I Told You So
by Lucigoosey The Lightbringer
Summary: "You… You've shown me what it's like to care for someone… unconditionally. Uncontrollably. Undeniably. Irrevocably. You've shown me what it's like to feel for someone, the need to protect them at any cost. You've shown me so much more than what I was programmed to experience, and for that, Michael Mell… I will always be grateful." / Or, Michael gets a Squip.
1. Chapter 1

Two months. Two months of being ignored, and Michael was genuinely breaking. And it wasn't even that Jeremy was _just _ignoring him, either. He was pretending he didn't even exist! And that… That hurt most of all. Like twelve years of friendship meant nothing to him. But the more Michael thought about it, he couldn't even be mad at Jeremy. He was mad at Rich, mad at the Squip controlling his best friend - ex best friend - but he couldn't be mad at Jeremy himself. It was ridiculous, but… how could he?

It was a school day, but Michael didn't feel like going. He was in his basement - which served as his room - smoking weed and writing stuff down to pin to his wall. There were a shitton of papers pinned to a board that stretched almost across the whole room, his beanbags, game stations and TV all shoved to the side to make room. It was stuff he'd learned about Squips. The few little things he could pick up on the internet - rare stuff that didn't really matter. And stuff he'd put together himself along the way. Just information, things he could use to help Jeremy. If he was right about him being controlled… Then his best friend was in trouble.

I mean, come _on_. There was nothing great about having a supercomputer literally telling you how to live your life. Period.

But he hated to admit that it was actually kind of cool. Being able to create that type of technology. He wanted to know how it functioned. How it worked. What it could do. The extent of its abilities…

_Focus. Focus, Mell. _Michael shook his head and looked up at the board, pinning a piece of paper to it. Something about optic nerve blocking that he'd heard of from some other guy. Squip-related, and Michael had a pretty good idea as to what it was, but he wasn't certain yet. He turned away, grabbing a bottle of water and taking a sip as he glanced around. Video games collecting dust in the corner, his few books scattered around uselessly. Headphones abandoned on the table, phone beside them, laptop opened.

He stared for a moment, an idea forming in his head, then turned to look at his video games. He blinked. Oh, this was such a horrible idea, but it could so work.

Michael was gonna go buy a few Squips.

* * *

After selling literally every single video game he had, as well as his game stations, he returned home with three grey pills in a plastic bag and was ready to start experimenting. First thing's first, he did not want to fucking take one of the damn things himself. He was not going to get stuck with a stupid supercomputer in his head. No. He was going to try to work whatever technology it was into a real computer. See if he could get into its data. It was literally a computer. Any kind of technology could be hacked if you knew how to get it right.

Just in case, he called up a friend. Well, not a friend. Just a tech whiz who loved money. With Jared Kleinman on his way over, Michael sat on his couch and set the pills one by one, side by side in front of him and glared at them all, wondering why anyone would come up with something like this. Something so horrible. If people wanted pills that would mess with their heads, couldn't they just get normal drugs? At least the effects of certain drugs fade away at some point. From what he'd heard, Squips stayed with you for-fucking-ever.

Sighing, he picked one of the pills up and studied it. He could see the tech inside, mostly hidden under the coating of the pill. If he could somehow get to that, Jared could probably find a way to put it into his laptop. He wondered, vaguely, if anyone had ever tried this before. He didn't know, but he doubted it.

He was working on removing the outer shell of the pill to get to the tech inside when Jared entered the basement - Michael had texted him to just come on in, so he had. He threw his backpack over the couch and jumped over the back of it to sit beside him, pulling out his own computer and setting it beside Michael's, as well as a hard drive. "So what'd you say this thing was again?"

"Squip."

"Squip? That's dumb," Jared deadpanned, typing something into his computer and frowning. "And there's literally nothing on the internet about it…?" He looked up, shooting Michael a questioning look. Michael just pushed his own laptop closer, and Jared's mouth formed a small "o" shape as he scrolled through the page. "How'd you get to this?"

"What's _not _on the internet?" Michael questioned, shaking his head. "I just kinda kept looking. Found a guy on World of Warcraft who gave me the link to this." He gestured to the laptop, then went back to removing the tech from the pill. "So, you think you can help me?"

"Oh, totally," Jared replied dismissively, scrolling through the page. "It's a computer. Computers are my thing." He continued to read for a moment before leaning back and typing something into his own laptop, pulling up a few different pages about computer hard drives and databases. Michael went back to what he was doing, and they both fell silent for a while. "To be clear, we're using your computer for this shit. My baby ain't getting ruined by a supposedly evil supercomputer."

"They _are_ evil, and fine." Michael rolled his eyes. "It's not like I need my laptop or anything anyway." Jared merely hummed in agreement and fell silent again, and Michael did as well. He finally managed to get the tech out of the pill. It looked like a tiny hard drive like thing. Michael inspected it for a moment before handing it over to Jared.

"Here's where it gets tough." Jared stuck his tongue out slightly and grabbed Michael's computer, as well as the hard drive he'd brought with him. "Nice. This… I've never seen this kind of quantum processor before. Very advanced. Give me, like, half an hour, man." He looked toward the other pills. "So why'd you get three?"

"Just in case." Michael grabbed the bag and put it in a drawer in his dresser, returning to lean over the back of the couch. He watched Jared work, zoning out as he did. About half an hour later, as promised, Jared flipped the laptop open again and set it down on the table, letting it power up and turning back to Michael.

"So, what do I get out of this?"

"I got three hundred left over," Michael replied easily, meeting his gaze, and Jared's expression lit up. Michael smiled dryly and turned away for a second, only to turn back when his laptop started beeping. He stared, silent, and Jared turned back to look as well. "Is that normal?"

"Not sure. I'm in uncharted territory. This tech hasn't even been officially released yet," Jared told him, hitting the button on the computer. Then he jumped when the beeping abruptly stopped, and the screen started glitching out violently. While it was doing so, large, blocky letters slowly appeared across the screen.

_**WELCOME TO YOUR SUPER QUANTUM UNIT INTEL PROCESSOR.**_

More glitching, and then the screen went black. Then more letters, this time written in red. Michael and Jared both leaned back.

_**WHAT. HAVE. YOU. DONE?**_

"T-" Michael's voice came out shakier than he intended, his face paling considerably as he took a few steps away from the couch. "T- Turn it off. Turn it off!" He was already terrified of the damn thing, this wasn't helping at all. Jared didn't hesitate to shut the computer down completely, looking extremely shook. After a moment of silence between them, he spoke again.

"That was awesome."

Feeling sick and terrified, Michael gave him the three hundred dollars and told him to see himself out before going to the bathroom to throw up.

He would have to find another way to get the information he needed.

* * *

Michael was forced to go back to school the next day. He didn't want to risk getting into trouble or anything, knowing that even if the students didn't know the difference, his teachers definitely knew he wasn't showing up. So he arrived the next day, exhausted. He'd ended up just stuffing his laptop into a bag and putting the bag in his bottom dresser to never be used again, and put the rest of the Squip pills in the top drawer.

Opening his locker, he tried to ignore the sound of Jeremy's laughter as he walked down the hall with Rich. Ignored the smug smirk Rich sent his way. Ignored them talking, ignored it all. He pulled his stuff out of the locker and went on to class. After a brief scolding from his teacher, things went back to normal. He was ignored, again, for the most part. When lunch rolled around, he was at his usual table by himself, nothing but an apple in front of him and his arms crossed over the table, chin on the back of his hands and his gaze fixed intently on the clock. He wanted to skip next period, but he decided against it. He couldn't just show up for half the day and be done with it.

He flinched in surprise when someone sat down across from him, a lunch tray being sat down rather harshly in front of him, and he let his gaze slowly flicker up to land on Jared's face. "... What, Kleinman?" He wasn't trying to be rude, but seeing his face made him instinctively think back to the evil possessed Squip computer. And it terrified him.

"Dude. Okay." Jared sat down and leaned forward, grabbing his fork. Someone else, who had been following him, stood by hesitantly, holding his tray. Michael looked up, gesturing for the boy to sit. And he did, a little reluctantly. Jared didn't even seem to notice. "So I did more research on that Squip thing. Met this guy online, right, who had one? He said that Squips are automatically programmed to assist their users, or whatever, in achieving whatever goals they have set. Basically like a desire thing. Whatever their user wants, the Squip helps them get it. But it can't do that unless it's actually _in _your head and _knows _what you desire. Which is why it kind of freaked out on us yesterday, I'm guessing."

"Wonderful." Michael made a face. "Well, hell no. I'm not swallowing one of those glorified tic-tacs if my life depended on it. Which, luckily, it doesn't. I'll just find another way." His gaze flickered toward the other guy, who was staring down at his hands. "You good?"

The guy jumped and looked up, managing a nervous half-smile. "I- I'm good, y- yeah. Hi," he stuttered, looking more nervous than Michael had seen anyone in his entire life. "I- I'm Hansen. N- I mean- Evan. Evan Hansen. I'm sorry."

Michael just nodded, knowing that pointing out the anxiety or acting like it was weird would just make it worse. "Nice to meet you, Evan. I'm Michael."

"It's nice to- to meet you, too." And with that, Evan looked back down at his hands and remained quiet the entire lunch hour. Jared ate mostly in silence, too, only stopping to ask Michael about the Squips or comment on how advanced the technology was and how he wanted to experiment with it himself. Michael didn't think he did a good job at talking him out of it, but he tried like hell to, at least.

He passed Jeremy while he was leaving the cafeteria. Didn't look at him, didn't let his heart break when there wasn't even a glance in his direction. Just kept pushing through.

* * *

It wasn't until later that day after school on his way home that something inside of him broke for the hundredth time. Leaving the school, he watched Rich's head turn in his direction and a cold smirk break across his face from where he stood beside Jeremy. "Hey, loser."

Jeremy stopped as well, turned his head, but his gaze roamed over Michael without even acknowledging him for a second. "Who're you talking to?" After a short pause, he muttered, "oh."

"Doesn't matter, dude." Rich nudged his shoulder. "Let's go play some video games. My place?" Jeremy gave a simple nod, and the two left. Michael watched them go with an empty feeling in his chest.

* * *

When he got home he sat on his bed and stared at the drawer. The drawer containing those fucking Squips. Those fucking supercomputers. Super Quantum Unit Intel Processors. He thought back to Jared's words. Assist their users with their goals, their desires. He stared for a long time before turning away, grabbing a bottle of whiskey on his nightstand. He wasn't usually a drinker, but this time he needed something stronger than weed to block out the emotions.

He let the world fade away into a dizzying numbness. Until he couldn't feel anything anymore. Until he couldn't think. Until he passed out.

And he woke up exactly 24 hours later on the floor with a half-empty bottle of mountain dew at his side and a plastic bag with only one grey pill left inside.


	2. Chapter 2

Michael woke up with a splitting headache that, at first, he figured had something to do with the hangover. He had been drinking a lot, not a big deal. He kept his eyes closed for a solid five minutes before he finally managed to twist and turn and roll over, shoving himself into a sitting position and rubbing his head. It was only when he put his hand back onto the floor and felt the plastic bag beside him did he look down to see the Mountain Dew and the single Squip pill left in the bag. And after a long moment of staring he realized with a horrible twisting in his gut that there had been two pills in that bag when he left for school that morning.

The terror that consumed him was overwhelming. He blinked, tears brewing in his eyes for a moment, and he slowly pulled his glasses off to rub at his eyes, hoping to push the tears back a little. It only made them well up faster. A tight feeling squeezed at his chest, panic brewing in the pit of his stomach and taking over his entire body as he managed to shove himself back, toward his bed, and reached up to pull himself onto it.

With shaking fingers, he went for the phone. His instinctive reaction during a panic attack was to call Jeremy, who usually calmed him down from this sort of thing. And then he pulled back, terror growing. He couldn't. Jeremy probably wouldn't even pick up the phone. Michael was left all on his own, possibly with a supercomputer in his head, and he had nobody to turn to that could possibly help him with this. Images raced through his mind, of his very soul being stripped away from him, free will shattered as he became nothing more than a puppet for this thing.

Michael was finding it so much harder to breathe. He gasped and turned, searching for his anxiety medication. But he froze with his shaking fingers on the bottle, then threw it as far away from him as he possibly could. No. No, no pills. He couldn't do this. He felt like he was suffocating, like he was underwater and fighting to get to the surface. And the longer he fought the more water consumed him. He squeezed at the blankets under him tightly and looked around the room. Maybe he hadn't taken the pill. Maybe he'd taken it out, but he hadn't swallowed it. But why else would the Mountain Dew be right there? Why would he have woken up like that? How long had he even been out for, anyway?

His thoughts were abruptly cut off by a sharp throb in his head, enough to make him double over and grasp at his hair with a short, choked gasp.

_**Calibration in process. Please excuse some mild discomfort.**_

"Mild?" Michael hissed, then gasped, back arching as another sharp pain went through his head. Then another. He threw himself back onto the bed, writhing in pain and trying not to scream at the top of his lungs. He screwed his eyes shut against the tears that came faster to his eyes now, and bit back a low sob. And then, as fast as it had started, it stopped.

_**Calibration: Complete. Access procedure: Initiated.**_

"Thank god," Michael choked out, and started to push himself up on his elbows, terror only growing at the voice in his head. He looked around, terrified, then flinched when the voice spoke up again.

_**Discomfort level may increase.**_

Michael's pupils shrunk. "What-"

And then- pain. He felt like he was being electrocuted through his whole body. He screamed this time, the tears beginning to roll down his face as he threw himself down again, grabbing the blankets tightly in one hand and shoving the other in his mouth, biting down. He bit until he tasted blood, muffling the sobs and trying not to pass out from the sheer pain.

_**Accessing: Neural memory.  
**__**Accessing: Muscle memory.  
**__**Access procedure: Complete.**_

And just like that it was over again. Michael stayed still, terror and pain consuming him. And then, to his surprise, the pain vanished abruptly, as if it had never been there in the first place. Along with the headache from his hangover. Michael blinked back the tears and struggled to sit up, shaking his head. There was a long moment of silence, and then…

Glitching into view in front of him, he locked eyes with his best friend's bright blue ones and watched the shaggy brown hair fall into his face. It would have looked exactly like Jeremy if not for the lack of emotion, the way it stood straight and still, not stuttering a bit as it spoke. Well, Michael thought it spoke. It didn't actually open its mouth.

_**Michael Mell… **_

God, this just kept getting fucking worse, didn't it?

The glitched-out Jeremy in front of him narrowed his eyes, mouth twisting a bit, then finally moving as it spoke aloud.

"**Welcome to your Super Quantum Unit Intel Processor."**

The words on the screen of his computer. Michael felt numb, staring. The words were cold and precise, all-business. But it was Jeremy's voice. His best friend's voice. Michael felt the tears returning to his eyes.

"**... Your Squip."**

There were several minutes of silence in which they held eye contact. Not-Jeremy didn't blink once, just studied him with calculating blue eyes. Michael on the other hand, blinked rapidly, as if trying to assure himself that what he was seeing was real. Or, maybe not assure himself. Convince himself. Hoping it was all some horrible nightmare he was about to wake up from. Or maybe he was hallucinating. Still drunk or something. High.

But that pain… that pain was real. _This _was real. Michael kicked himself for being so stupid, still staring at Not-Jeremy with a torn expression on his face. It was bad enough that he was about to be taken over by an ultra-powerful supercomputer with access to apparently every part of his body. The thing that was going to scar him was that the supercomputer looked exactly like his ex-best friend. Come on. That was just fucking cruel.

"**My intentions are not to hurt you with the form I have chosen,"** Not-Jeremy told him coolly, eyebrows knitting together as the supercomputer feigned a confused expression. Innocent, Michael thought numbly. Not likely. "**My tests have concluded that there is a 59% likelihood that you will cooperate best while I am in this form."**

Cooperate. That sounded bad. Michael stared.

"**I simply mean cooperate in allowing me to assist you."**

Michael continued to stare. Not-Jeremy stared back, before taking a quiet step forward. Besides that, he didn't really move at all, and his gaze didn't move from Michael's. Michael, on the other hand, immediately scrambled back to the other side of his bed, managing to plant his feet on the floor and putting as much distance between them as was physically possible. "Oh, hell no! You stay the hell away from me!" He exclaimed, voice shaking. "_Umalis ka! Naiintindihan mo ba?"_

"**_Syempre_," **Not-Jeremy responded immediately, his voice a quiet monotone as he gave a simple nod.

Oh. He knew Filipino.

"**I do." **Not-Jeremy nodded again. "**I am programmed to speak several languages in order to communicate properly with my user. My default language is Japanese."**

… Michael was really beginning to believe this thing could read his mind. "Wow."

Not-Jeremy shrugged, still staring at him calmly. "**I exist literally in your mind, Michael. Hearing your thoughts is merely a fraction of my abilities." **He suddenly glitched out of sight, then reappeared in front of Michael again in the same way, face to face and staring down at him. Michael practically stopped breathing.

"What did I say?!" Michael yelled once he'd recovered, putting a hand over his chest and backing away. "_Fuck_, man! Don't do that! If you're gonna control me or whatever or use me to destroy the world at least don't make jumpscares a constant thing too, Jesus Christ! _Diyos_!"

He swore the damn thing was trying not to smirk. "**My apologies." **He then stepped forward, closing the distance between them once more, and Michael slid a step back on instinct. "**However, you have your information twisted. I do not plan on attempting to control you, nor use you as a means for world destruction. I exist solely to assist you in your current goal." **He paused, eyes glitching over for a moment, then spoke again. "**Current Goal: Assisting Jeremy Heere in disposing of his Squip."**

Michael stared, tense and wary, while the Not-Jeremy processed the given information. "**I suppose… Oh, dear." **He looked puzzled now - could supercomputers get confused? Michael had so many questions, but he couldn't bring himself to voice any of them. The Not-Jeremy finally snapped back to attention, focusing on Michael. "**I am not programmed to process human emotion."**

Oh. That answered that, then.

Not-Jeremy (Michael needed to find something better to call him, jeez) turned away and studied the board Michael had on the wall, seemingly analyzing the information he'd discovered. Michael stood still, tense, ready to make a run for it. If he could even outrun something that literally existed in his head. He couldn't. He couldn't even figure out how to get rid of the damn thing. God, was he going to be stuck with it his whole life now?

"**Focus, Mell." **The Squip told him dryly, turning back to face him again with a slightly sour expression. "**You need to be more chill."**

"Be more chill." Michael stared at him, dumbfounded. "Right, yeah. Okay." He was still a little shook at how much the thing resembled his best friend. Ex-best friend…

"**Ah, yes. Jeremy Heere. It seems his Super Quantum Unit Processor has malfunctioned. It is one of the older models, so I am not particularly surprised by this," **Not-Jeremy was nodding to himself as he spoke, staring at Michael silently for a moment before stepping forward a bit and raising his chin, still staring down at Michael, who was having a hard time not stepping back on instinct. "**First thing's first. School."**

Michael had totally forgotten about school.

"**I know. Now, get ready. By my calculations, you should be able to make it on time if you shower fast and eat breakfast on the way."**

Now Michael just stared at him, because he hadn't planned on doing either of those things. The Squip stared back, calculating, cold blue eyes meeting his, and after a moment of silence Michael backed away and gave a simple, shaky thumbs up. The Squip nodded, satisfied, and disappeared.

Welp.

* * *

Michael Mell had one of the purest minds in existence. Most people got Squips to help them with tests, to get laid, to be popular, to memorize information. It was a rare, almost straight up nonexistent, occurrence where someone would get a Squip, not to help themselves, but to help someone close to them. And the more the Squip dug into Michael's mind, the more it came out confused and stunned. It was hard to take a _supercomputer _by surprise, but this one was most certainly in shock.

He assumed, of course, that Michael wanted to help this friend of his only to get him back, so that Jeremy Heere would begin talking to him again and that things would go back to normal. A mostly selfish reason. The Squip had seen worse. But then he'd continued digging, scanning every piece of information in the boy's mind. He didn't _care _whether Jeremy spoke to him again or not. Well, he _cared_, but he most certainly didn't expect it to happen. The desire to help his friend was stronger than anything the Squip could have possibly imagined. He didn't hate the guy for abandoning him as he had. He just wanted to help him get rid of the thing he'd deemed as a monster.

Michael just wanted to help him. No ulterior motive, no catch, nothing. He was fully prepared to move on with his life when Jeremy was Squip-free, as long as it meant he was safe from being taken over by the thing in his head.

The Squip could feel it now, the pain and fear radiating off of Michael as he pushed through the school crowds. It watched his gaze slide toward Jeremy for a half-second before he silently reminded himself not to look. The Squip's gaze flickered up to the holographic Keanu Reeves following behind Jeremy, arms clasped behind its back, and it stopped beside him to stare in pure confusion.

_Bet you didn't see that one coming, _the Squip thought to itself, fighting the smirk threatening to tug at its lips. "**Greetings."**

"**Greetings," **the Keanu-Squip replied curtly, then turned away and continued on its way after Jeremy. "**Jeremy! What did I tell you about slouching? Don't tell me we have to start this all over again!"**

The Squip was faintly surprised to hear such anger from the other supercomputer, and a little worried despite itself. Michael didn't even know it, but he was making the right call. This Squip needed to be out of Jeremy's head, pronto. It wasn't rare that a Squip would defy its purpose, to push the limits and test their users, pushing them to the brink of insanity. And that was horrifying, because the Squips sole purpose is to make their user's life change for the better, not worse. But it was new technology, and some - if not most - malfunctioned.

He watched Jeremy flinch, bite his tongue as if in pain, and straighten up. The Keanu-Squip smirked, satisfied, and led him away to a group of girls.

No, now, that was just it. The Squip watched them go before turning away. When it turned completely, it ended up materializing beside Michael, who was in class and doing some kind of test - math, by the looks of it. The Squip raked its gaze over the test, watching Michael's gaze barely flicker up to him before a pained look crossed his face, and then just one of anger. Anger - another emotion that Michael, surprisingly, lacked for others. Aside from the Squips, of course. This one was just hoping it could change that.

"**Would you like my assistance?"**

"No," Michael muttered under his breath, and despite how quiet it was, a few heads turned from the kids in the seats beside him. Michael tried not to wince, his gaze glued to the paper in front of him wordlessly. The Squip rolled its eyes.

"**I see. Well, if you don't want my assistance in schoolwork, at least take my advice and try not to speak to me out loud while we're surrounded by many other people who may or may not assume that you belong in a mental hospital," **the words came out sickly sweet, more sarcastic than a supercomputer had any right to be, but no real emotion to the words. "**Okay?"**

It watched as Michael rolled his eyes, and it had to bite back a smirk.

_And what are you going to do if I don't, huh?_

"**Oh, absolutely nothing," **the Squip replied, not even having to ask what Michael _thought _it was going to do. It tried not to pay attention to those particular thoughts. "**It's just a word of friendly advice, Mell."**

_Well, then, you can shove it up your ass, _Michael glanced up to stare at him for a moment. _And let me work._

Despite himself, the Squip smirked a little. "**Fine," **it responded calmly, leaning against the desk. "**But don't blame me when you get a D- on that," **it added, nodding to the test, and fell silent when Michael scoffed and rolled his eyes before turning back to what he was doing, and the Squip looked up to survey the room.

After a few more classes in which Michael continued to reject the Squip's help, which the Squip actually admired, by the way, because, again, most people got Squips just _for _tests, Michael sat down at lunch with a tray full of food, which the Squip had insisted on. After accessing his memories for the past few months, he realized the boy had barely been eating, if at all. And that, honestly, didn't bode well with the Squip.

It sat down in the chair across from him and watched as Michael started to push the tray away from him, making the Squip groan. "**Are you really going to waste it, Mell? Starving kids-"**

"Oh, no. Don't pull that shit," Michael started, then paused and lowered his voice, turning his glare to the food. The Squip raised an eyebrow mockingly and turned to look around the room. It locked eyes briefly with the Keanu-Squip, who was staring at them in silence, processing. "I didn't even want it."

"**One day, you're going to learn the difference between what you "want" and what you "need", and I'm going to be very proud of you for it," **the Squip remarked sarcastically, and Michael sneered back in response, a look of pure annoyance on his face.

"You know, I expected you to be "end-of-the-world" _evil_, but you're just a _dick_."

"**Why, thank you," **the Squip replied with an innocent looking smile as it leaned forward and crossed its arms over the table. "**Now eat. After all-" **Its gaze flickered toward the Keanu-Squip again, and it stopped speaking aloud so it wouldn't hear. **You can't help Jeremy if you die from starvation.**

That alone was enough to make Michael pull the tray toward him and begin eating. But the boy didn't stop glaring at the Squip. It just smiled, satisfied, and leaned back. So far, so good.

* * *

"How am I supposed to help Jeremy if he won't even _speak _to me?" Michael fell onto his bed the second he got home, backpack abandoned on the floor and the Squip hovering near the board of information. The damn thing had been annoying all day, with constant jabs and taunts. And the occasional "**Told you so"**, which Michael really hated, by the way. But as rude as it was, it didn't seem evil. Just… dickish. Still, Michael's guard was up.

The Squip turned back to him, leaning back and crossing its arms over its chest as it stared at him. Michael rolled over and sat up to glare at it, clutching a pillow in his lap. "**There are… temporary shutdowns," **it finally replied. "**Alcohol, weed, anything that messes with the brain." **It gestured to its own head. "**It renders us useless."**

Michael threw a glance toward the joint on his desk. The Squip actually laughed. And it sounded so much like Jeremy's laugh that Michael's heart ached.

"**If you're going to get high, I'll shut myself down beforehand," **it finally dismissed, waving a hand in Michael's direction carelessly. Michael threw it a surprised glance, and the Squip raised an eyebrow. "**What, did you expect me to ban weed or something? No. It might kill you when you get older, and will cut off communication between us temporarily, but I don't care what you do, Micha."**

And just like that, Michael's throat closed up reflexively from the nickname. He saw a weird expression cross the Squip's face, something akin to guilt, before its face went cold again. "Don't call me that."

"**Of course. My apologies." **The Squip turned back to the board. "**This is quite impressive," **it commented suddenly. "**The Creator likes to keep things discreet about the Super Quantum Unit Processors. For you to be able to gather this kind of information - upon guesses, as well. Theories…" **It shrugged. "**Impressive."**

Michael snorted. It was a compliment, but a compliment from the one thing he'd sworn to hate. Then again, it was spoken in Jeremy's voice, which made it a hell of a lot worse. "Whatever. So we've established that the Squip can be shut down temporarily. How do we get rid of his _permanently_?"

"**That might be a tad more difficult," **the Squip replied with a shake of its head. "**Difficult, but not impossible," **he added when Michael visibly deflated. "**There are several options to a permanent shutdown. One is contacting the Creator."**

"Great." That sounded a lot harder than Michael would have liked, but he brushed it off. Whatever it took to help Jeremy, right? "So, how do I do that?"

"_**You**_ **would not be able to. The Creator does not allow communication from the outside world." **The Squip walked over to him, crossing its arms over its chest as its eyes glitched over for a moment before turning black, consumed in a code of jumbled letters. "**I do not have permission for contact."**

"Well, that's fucked," Michael muttered, a sour look crossing his face as he sat back. "What else can we do?"

The Squip sighed and narrowed its eyes, going silent for a moment before taking a deep breath and meeting Michael's gaze again. "**We first need to convince him to allow you to help him. Otherwise, it will only be more difficult to get rid of the Squip," **it finally told him. "**Then we can work on a permanent solution."**

Michael eyed the Squip for a moment. He still didn't know whether to trust it or not, honestly. All he knew was that he was scared to death of this thing taking him over, and of not being able to save his friend. He still thought taking the thing was mistake - buying it, selling his games. But… Maybe the thing could help him. Maybe. It did concern him that it hadn't told him anything about how to get rid of it yet, though. "Fine."

"**Fine," **the Squip echoed, with its usually shit-eating smirk back in place as it turned back to survey the board. "**First thing's first; A temporary fix. We need to catch Jeremy while his Squip is either willingly deactivated or completely immobilized. The latter would be much more convenient for us."**

"Wonderful," Michael muttered. "Another problem, though. Jeremy doesn't drink. And if his Squip knows weed will turn it off, then that's out, too. And I'm not going to force alcohol down my friend's throat, so don't even suggest it!"

"**I wasn't going to." **The Squip rolled its eyes and turned back to him. A blank expression crossed its face for a moment, eyes glitching over as it went completely still, then slowly blinked and nodded. "**You'll have your chance to speak with him."**

"And how do you know that?" Michael grumbled, irritation growing.

"**My quantum processor allows me to envision probable futures." **The Squip told him matter-of-factly, almost smugly. "**Trust me."**

"'_My quantum processor allows me to envision probable futures'_," Michael mimicked, tossing the pillow at it. It went right through the thing, being only a hologram in Michael's head, and the boy scowled while the Squip's smirk widened. "Fuck you."

"**I have no desire to engage in sexual activity with you. Even if I was physically able to. Or emotionally, for that matter."**

"You- You know what I _meant_," Michael insisted, glaring at him. The Squip shrugged innocently before walking over to him, uncrossing its arms to point at the backpack Michael had abandoned on the floor.

"**You should get your homework done."**

"You're supposed to be helping me help my friend, not pester me about school," Michael groaned, but he did push himself up to retrieve the pillow, and his backpack.

"**And I am helping you. But you shouldn't be neglecting things you need to do for your education - and health, for that matter - just to focus on Jeremy," **the Squip deadpanned. "**So, get to work."**

"Careful there, tic-tac," Michael mumbled, pulling his homework out of the bag. "Or you might actually start to sound like you care about me."

He didn't get a response.


	3. Chapter 3

The Squip had nothing to do while Michael was asleep. Supercomputers didn't need rest, though it could have just shut itself down 'til morning. But, at the same time, it wanted to be awake. It had taken it an hour to get Michael to sleep, continuing to pester him loudly until the boy finally gave in and laid down at exactly 1:34 AM. He hadn't been sleeping well, either, staying up until at least six in the morning and sleeping for like, an half-hour before getting up to go to school. And, hell no. The Squip was not going to let him do that to himself.

It didn't care about Michael, of course. It was a supercomputer. Not built to experience human emotion. But it also didn't want to just sit by while Michael tortured himself for weeks on end. The Squip knew he was going through a tough time, but he still needed to take care of himself. He was too selfless. He needed someone to teach him how to take a little bit for himself every now and again.

While Michael was sleeping, the Squip busied itself with syncing with some of the others. First was Rich's Squip - easy enough. It was honestly horrified with how much Rich's Squip had malfunctioned - it wasn't normal for one to behave the way it was toward their user. And Jeremy's Squip was well on its way. It seemed that they were trying to literally drive their users crazy, slowly but surely. The Squip had to admit - Michael was a smart one, recognizing that Jeremy needed help. If they didn't fix this fast, the Squip was terrified of what might happen to the poor kids.

It wasn't programmed to process humanlike compassion. So why did it care so much? The Squip shook its head and was about to shut down for the night when Michael suddenly let out a loose sob from his bed. It spun around immediately to look, eyebrows raising slightly and opening its mouth to say something, but stopped. Michael was still asleep.

The Squip stepped closer and turned its head, pulling up a holographic screen beside it. Ah, Michael was having a nightmare. Specifically, about Jeremy. And the Squips. The Squip watched the screen for a moment before narrowing its eyes. Nightmares were the easier part of this job. Just had to mess with a few things in the brain… It crossed his arms again, watching the screen go black.

It turned back to Michael, watching him go still and roll onto his back. It frowned, looking back at the screen, then waved a hand in frustration. It wasn't leaving Michael like this. It took a moment to go over all of his memories, picking out the happier ones from Michael's childhood, occasionally adding a few with Jeremy just for the heck of it. Once it had a good little "playlist" of memories that would last all night, it passed them off and watched them unfold on the screen.

The Squip turned back to Michael, watching his stiff muscles slowly begin to relax, his furrowed eyebrows relaxing immediately. A slightly shaky sigh escaped the boy's lips for a moment, and when a soft, barely perceptible smile crossed Michael's face, the Squip closed the screen and went back to what it had been doing, satisfied.

* * *

Michael woke up the next morning to the loud sound of a rooster blaring in his ear. He nearly fell out of bed from it, screaming as he scrambled back to catch his breath. When he finally registered the sight of the Squip standing beside his bed, holding a holographic alarm clock in one hand, he snapped, "what the fuck, dude?! _Huwag gawin iyon, _idiot_! Diyos!_" He sucked in a breath to try and calm down.

The Squip kind of just started laughing, blue eyes alight with amusement. "**Rise and shine, sport. You've got a big day ahead of you. So why don't you get up, get dressed, brush your teeth, brush your hair, and make yourself some coffee and breakfast?"**

Michael scowled and threw his blankets off of him, throwing his legs over the side of the bed and rubbing at his head. "I swear to god. It's five…"

"**If you had gone to sleep when I'd suggested, we wouldn't be having this problem," **the Squip told him with a slight snort. "**I told you."**

Michael repeated those last three words mockingly as he stood up, rubbing his eyes, and headed to his bathroom. The Squip waited patiently in his room as he changed and brushed his teeth and hair - somewhat begrudgingly and only because he knew if he didn't he would just be fussed at again - and once again reminded him of the food and coffee when Michael came back out. As if he wasn't already planning on it.

"**Well, I'm just making sure you have a good meal before school." **The Squip followed him as he headed upstairs, and Michael rolled his eyes.

"_Thanks_, Mom," Michael said sarcastically as he walked into the kitchen, relieved that the house was empty and his parents had gone to work. He started brewing coffee before heading for the fridge, rubbing his eyes and pulling out a half-eaten breakfast bar.

"**No."**

"It's- Nutrients!" Michael turned, waving the breakfast bar at it. "What, you want me to cook eggs and bacon or something? I'll end up burning the house down. I'm exhausted!"

"**That does not have any of the proper nourishments you need at the moment." **The Squip pointed at the breakfast bar. "**It's not even a whole one. You're "exhausted" because you stayed up past midnight despite my warnings, and because you haven't eaten properly in two months. So unless you want to continue feeling exhausted, put that down and get yourself something filling. Make a couple pancakes."**

… Pancakes actually sounded pretty good.

"**That's the spirit, Mell."**

"Shut up." Michael threw the breakfast bar into the trash and walked past it without another word. He grabbed the box of pancake mix from the cabinet, but immediately stopped what he was doing and went for the coffee maker instead when it beeped. He tried to ignore the Squip's gaze on him as he poured him a cup and added some sugar and milk before practically downing at least half of it.

And he hated to admit it, but once he'd finished off the coffee and pancakes, he was actually feeling pretty great.

"**Told you."**

Michael's mood soured instantly. He shot the Squip a glare before grabbing his backpack and slinging it over one shoulder. The Squip just shrugged and smiled. "**Let's go, slugger. Today's gonna be a good day."**

"Doubt it."

* * *

Michael didn't know why the Squip had made a big deal out of today being some sort of important thing, because it was pretty uneventful. He almost fell asleep in class, ended up getting a D- on the test he'd taken the day before - to which the Squip gave him a smug "**Told you so"**. But, surprisingly, he got through the day pretty well. His mood dropped considerably when he passed Jeremy in the halls, listening to him laugh at something Rich was saying, but he didn't look back. He did notice that the Squip's mood had seemed to sour as well. _What's wrong, parasite? _

The Squip rolled its eyes, glancing back after Jeremy for a moment before looking back at Michael as they walked. **Jeremy's Squip is more dysfunctional than I had previously realized. **

_Which is why I need to help him get rid of it. _Michael shook his head, much more terrified now as he shook his head. The Squip hummed slightly in agreement, but stayed silent for the most part now throughout the rest of the day. Lunch was mostly uneventful - he'd started eating without being told, just to avoid the Squip's lecture today - and gotten through the rest of his classes despite honestly just wanting to skip and go home.

He was now getting his stuff ready to head home, but stopped and looked up when the Squip suddenly delivered a hard tug to the back of his hoodie. He looked up, annoyed and ready to start yelling, but stopped when he saw what the Squip was looking at. Jeremy and Jake.

Michael went silent as he stared, torn, then abruptly forced his gaze away. Only, the Squip tugged on his hoodie again, and Michael felt about ready to snap. _What? What about him? _

**Not Jeremy. **

Michael blinked and turned his gaze to Jake, slightly uncertain now. _What, popular hot guy Jake Dillinger? _He turned his gaze to the Squip, eyes narrowing faintly before he turned back to what he was going. This time, the Squip left him alone, leaning back against the lockers and watching him.

**He's hosting a Halloween party in a few weeks. This might be your chance.**

_How?_

**Teenage parties mostly consist of sex, drugs and booze. Correct? **Michael paused and gave the Squip an odd look. **Jeremy just got invited. I assume his Squip will be forcing him to go, as it would get him higher up on the social map. If you go, there is a… **It paused. … **74% chance that you will be able to speak to Jeremy with the Squip out of the way.**

_Yeah, one problem with that, tic-tac. _Michael rolled his eyes and pulled his backpack over his shoulders, turning to leave. _I won't be invited to that party, not in a million years._

**Well, then. **The Squip fell into step with him and shrugged, but a mischievous smile was spreading across its face, one that gave Michael the chills. **Guess we'll just have to sneak you in.**

* * *

"You want me to sneak into the biggest party of the _Fall _and do _what_, exactly?! Walk up to Jeremy - _if _he can even see me, that is - and be all like _oh, hey, man, nice to see you, now let's go get that supercomputer out of your head before it drives you insane_?!" Michael raged as soon as he walked through the door of his house, slamming it shut and spinning around to face the Squip.

The Squip paused and looked up, its gaze drifting past Michael for a second. "**Mell-"**

"No!" Michael cut it off immediately, looking irritated. "I mean, seriously, what the hell do you expect is going to happen? He'll probably continue to ignore me, anyway. And do you really think he'll even be allowed to do anything at that party, knowing what alcohol and drugs does to th-"

It was the Squip's turn to interrupt, looking a little anxious now. "_**Mell**_**."**

"What?!" Michael threw his hands up in exasperation, and the Squip glanced back at him calmly before stepping forward, throwing another glance over Michael's shoulder. The boy paused, blinking, then silently turned to look. He nearly fell over when he saw both of his mothers standing there, both with looks of confusion written all over their faces.

"Michael…" One of his mothers stepped forward, eyes wide with concern. "Are you… Are you feeling alright?"

_Shit_. Michael closed his eyes, internally cursing himself as he nodded and took a deep breath. "Yeah, Ma. I'm fine." He took his backpack off and stripped himself of his hoodie, hanging it up on the rack beside the door and glaring at the Squip as he did so.

"**What? You're the one that came in here screeching."**

Michael resisted the urge to start yelling again, busying himself with kicking off his shoes.

"Are you sure?" There was a hand on his forehead now, another on his cheek and he found himself staring up into the concerned gazes of his mothers, both of which had surrounded him now. "You were… Talking to yourself, honey."

"I'm fine. I promise." Michael shrugged them off without really trying to offer an explanation, looking down and picking at some lint on his _Star Wars _shirt. "I've just had a bad day."

His mothers exchanged uncertain looks before turning back to him. "Are you hungry? We've got chicken cooking for dinner," one offered softly, eyebrows knitting together in concern. Michael opened his mouth, about to decline, because he genuinely wasn't hungry.

However, he caught the Squip's gaze. "**You should eat."**

Michael gritted his teeth and nodded, picking his backpack back up. "That sounds great," he lied, walking past his parents to get to the basement and ignoring the concerned stares that followed him. He shut the door at the top of the stairs and went straight for his bed. The Squip, of course, followed him.

"**Homework?" **The Squip took a seat on his bed, despite not even really needing to sit down - Michael scowled - and gave him an expectant look.

"Once you tell me why the hell I have to go to this party," Michael mumbled, but he did pull his books out of the bag. "I doubt he'll even talk to me anyway. I'll probably spend the whole night in the bathroom or something. I'm not even invited!"

"**But isn't all that worth it for even the **_**chance **_**to be able to help Jeremy?"**

"I-" Michael stopped, and took a deep breath, looking down. "He's worth anything, okay? I just don't want to screw this up."

"**You won't."**

"You don't know that."

"**My quantum processor allows me t-"**

"To envision probable futures. I know," Michael interrupted, flipping his book open. He stared down at it blankly for a moment before sighing and looking up, reluctantly meeting the Squip's gaze. He still hated the damn thing, but he wasn't as terrified as he had been when they'd started out. He still didn't trust it though - at least, a part of him didn't. But he had to realize that this might be his only chance to save his friend, so he had to push all of this aside for Jeremy's sake. "... What do I need to do?"

* * *

Later that night, Michael was laying in his bed with his arms crossed under his head, staring up into the ceiling. The Squip stood nearby, arms crossed over its chest as it stared at Michael. The boy laid still, eyebrows furrowed. He was bored. The Squip wasn't pressuring him to sleep - it was only, like, 7:30 or something - but he had nothing to do. He debated getting high, but decided against it. It wasn't fun without Jeremy, anyway. What he really wanted, though, was to play video games. Those weren't fun without him either, but it was a nice distraction, at least.

He saw the Squip's head raise slightly, and turned his head to meet its gaze, raising an eyebrow questioning. The Squip studied him for a moment before waving a hand, and Michael stared in confusion and disbelief when a large holographic screen appeared in front of the wall across from him, almost as big as the wall itself.

"What the hell," Michael whispered, eyes widening in disbelief - and pure awe - as he stared at the screen. The Squip shrugged and went silent for a second, then waved its hand again. The screen glitched, and then Call of Duty appeared on it. Michael hated to admit it, he really hated to admit it, but it was actually kind of awesome. Seriously, whoever had made this thing was the Tech _God_.

… He didn't have a controller, though.

"**The only controller you need is your mind," **the Squip informed him, walking over and settling down on the edge of Michael's desk, arms crossed as he leaned back to watch. "**You can play as long as you go to bed by 9:15."**

Michael thought about that for a second, glancing between the Squip and the screen for a moment before giving in. "... Deal."


	4. Chapter 4

The next few weeks went by in a blur. The Squip had finally given Michael a list of everything that could both temporarily _and _permanently shut the Squips down. And literally everything on the list was mostly impossible - except one. Mountain Dew Red. Michael _lived _for the discontinued, old-school drinks. His only problem was that nowhere he knew of had it. Spencer's Gifts was getting a shipment in about a month or so, and Michael still needed to get the money for it. But, other than that, Michael was just praying he could get through to Jeremy.

Another thing, the mutual hatred between them had seemed to dull down a bit. The Squip actually made Michael laugh sometimes now, despite himself. When Michael was upset about Jeremy, or bored and brooding, the Squip found ways to distract him and cheer him up in its own dickish ways. And he was a lot more cooperative and willing to listen once the Squip had told him about the Mountain Dew Red. He had been surprised that the Squip was willing to tell him this information, and the Squip had replied,

"_**I have no reason to withhold this information from you, Mell. If you choose to get rid of me, that is your decision."**_

So, yeah. He trusted the thing a little bit more, somewhat. He wasn't worried about it corrupting him, at least. It was actually pretty cool to have around, but Michael wouldn't admit it out loud. Not that he needed to, it knew his opinion of it. Which was kind of fucked. But neither of them spoke of it.

Michael was currently frozen in a corner, watching other kids dance and laugh and overall just go crazy over the party. His anxiety was spiking up majorly, and it took everything he had not to throw up right then and there, or just turn tail and leave. His gaze flickered around, searching for Jeremy among the crowd, but he couldn't catch a glimpse of his former friend. Which only made his anxiety that much worse.

He took a deep breath and tried to remember to do just that - breathe. He looked down at the cup in his hand that he had yet to drink out of. The Squip had advised against it, so that it could still function and be there if something went south. And so he could tell Michael what to say to Jeremy when the time came. The Squip had gone off to interact with other Squips, "**forging a connection"**, it had explained, as some of the kids there weren't students of the school Michael had gone to. So Michael was mostly alone while it went off to interact. He stared down, rubbing his thumb along the rim of the cup.

**I'm surprised by how many kids here are already Squipped. **There was a short pause. **How are you doing?**

_Fine. Well, not fine. But that doesn't matter. _Michael took a deep breath, busying himself with chewing on his fingernails as he looked around anxiously, wanting to down all of what was in the cup but restraining himself. _Is Jeremy here? _Then he almost started laughing. Jeremy. Here. Jeremy Heere.

… **I'll give you a pass on that one. And no, he is not. I believe he is on his way, however, I can sense his Squip from here. **The Squip was suddenly at his side, arms crossed over its chest as it looked Michael up and down, digital eyebrows knitting together. **It shouldn't be that much longer now, Mell.**

Michael shook his head and took a deep breath, trying to force himself to relax. The Squip studied him for a moment before suddenly grabbing his shoulder, giving a small tug. When Michael looked, he saw that the Squip was pointing toward the bathroom. _You want me to hide in the bathroom._

**Not hide. Just try and relax and catch your breath, **the Squip advised, staring at him. Michael opened his mouth to protest, but a look from the Squip had him shaking his head, reluctantly pushing forward to go to the bathroom. He flinched away from the other kids, shutting and locking the door once he was safely inside and sucking in a sharp breath, holding it and letting it out slowly. **That's it. Breathe.**

"Shut up," Michael groaned, not really trying to be rude, but needing a moment of silence to relax. The Squip gave him that, and once he was _mostly _okay, it spoke up again,

**Who spilled Mountain Dew Red in your quantum processor?**

Michael actually laughed a bit at that, the joke managing to take the rest of the tension away. He rested his head against the door before turning away, setting the cup of spiked punch down on the edge of the sink before walking over and taking a seat on the edge of the tub, putting his head in his hands. Maybe this was a bad idea. He was at this huge-ass party with a stupid "disguise" that probably wasn't even fooling anyone at all, and he didn't even know if he would be able to talk to Jeremy at all. Maybe he'd come here for nothing.

"**Or maybe this is your chance," **the Squip replied, beginning to speak aloud again as it sat beside him. "**You can't live in fear of "what if's" and "maybe's", Mell. That doesn't get anybody anywhere. You need to take your chances before they can pass you by."**

Michael nodded slightly, taking another deep breath and closing his eyes. "I don't know, man. I just…" He trailed off. "I don't even know if he'll listen to me."

"**He will," **the Squip told him, leaning back a little and placing its hands on the edge of the tub on either side of it.

"And how do you know that?" Michael muttered, then added, "and don't say because of your quantum processor allowing you to envision probable futures-"

The Squip snorted, then turned serious. "**Because you're a good person, who genuinely cares about his well-being and is sincerely concerned about what his Squip is doing to him." **It met his gaze, eyebrows raising. "**You're exactly the type of person he needs in his life right now. He'd be an idiot not to see that."**

Michael went silent, considering that for a moment, then let out a laugh and took his glasses off, rubbing the tears from his eyes. "You're really good at this pep talk shit," he sighed, closing his eyes.

"**I know I am," **the Squip replied dismissively, with a cheeky smile. "**Do you think you're alright to go back out now?"**

Michael hesitated.

"**That's alright," **the Squip added with a shrug, then gestured in front of them. Michael turned to look just in time to see the familiar, large, holographic screen pull up in front of them. "**You can just pass the time playing video games until you are." **It flashed him a smile, and Michael managed to grin in response.

* * *

About half an hour later, Michael finally managed to work up the nerve to leave the bathroom, the Squip falling into step with him easily. He made his way through the crowd, trying to avoid eye contact but at the same time at least sort-of attempting to look confident enough to make other people think he belonged there. He definitely avoided Jake, certain that he would recognize that Michael wasn't supposed to be at the party, and paused near the beverage stand to catch his breath, anxiety practically crushing him.

**You're doing good, Mell. **The Squip put a hand on his shoulder and gave a slight squeeze, trying to reassure him. Michael just shook his head and took another deep breath to calm down. **Just breathe. You're fine.**

Michael nodded and closed his eyes, taking his glasses off to rub at his eyes. It took him a moment to straighten up again, putting his glasses back on and turning around, only to jerk back when he almost bumped into someone. Someone familiar, actually. Well, not _familiar_ familiar, but he knew that face anywhere. And it just about broke him, because, _God_, too many old memories resurfaced the moment they locked eyes.

Christine. Christine Canigula.

**Jeremy Heere's target female, **the Squip muttered, and Michael tried not to wince. Part of the reason Jeremy had gotten the Squip. So that he could get close to Christine. But he couldn't be mad at her for that. She had absolutely no idea. Despite it all, she was a sweet girl.

"Sorry-" Christine paused and looked up, eyebrows furrowing as she met Michael's gaze. He opened his mouth to assure her that it was fine, but she stopped him before he could speak. "Hey… You're Michael, right? Jeremy's friend?" Her eyebrows raised, a smile gracing her face as she spoke. "You two used to hang out together, right?"

"Yeah…" Michael trailed off, rubbing his arm and forcing a smile at her in return. "We did." Awkward silence followed for a moment after that, until Michael finally managed to speak again, clearing his throat. "Uh. You're Christine, yeah?" He reached behind him to grab another cup of the spiked punch - he'd dumped his other one out in the sink - just to make it look like he really did belong there.

"That's me!" Christine beamed and held a hand out to him. Michael hesitated, but he reached out when the Squip nudged him, shaking her hand. She had a firm grip, he noted. "It's really nice to meet you."

"Pleasure's all mine." Michael managed to give her a hesitant smile, then looked up when the Squip suddenly poked him. Immediately, he faltered. Because none other than Jeremy Heere had walked through the door, standing straight and confident and with a smile on his face. He walked over to them, and gave Christine a nod. Michael was frozen.

"Hi, Jeremy," Christine spoke up cheerfully, putting her hands into her pockets and looking over at Jeremy with a smile as he grabbed a can of mountain dew. Michael watched, his heart pounding in his chest. This was closer than he'd gotten to Jeremy in so long, and he couldn't even see him standing there. He couldn't even acknowledge his existence.

"Hey, Christine." Jeremy opened the can of mountain dew, looking like he was about to say more, but stopped abruptly and threw a glance beside him before simply turning and walking away, toward where Brooke was standing. Michael slowly relaxed, a low sigh escaping his lips as he shook his head, surprised by how painful it was to be around him now. But he had to suck it up and get used to it. He just needed to help Jeremy. Then get out of his life for good.

**Are you alright? **The Squip was glaring after Jeremy, focused on the other Squip that Michael couldn't see.

_I'm fine. _Michael wasn't fine. He felt numb. Without a word, he slid past Christine, who was trying to talk to him again. "I'm sorry, I have to go," he muttered as he passed, breezing past Jeremy and Brooke without another word and going to the bathroom, shutting and locking it behind him once more before walking over to the sink, setting the cup down and doubling over to catch his breath.

**You can't lie to me, Mell. I'm inside your head, **the Squip sighed, and Michael flinched when it put a hand on his back. But then he relaxed into the touch, surprised to find himself strangely comforted by the goddamn supercomputer. **Just breathe. You'll be okay, I promise.**

"I can't do this," Michael whispered, shaking his head and blinking back tears as he looked up. He lifted one hand to pull his glasses off when they abruptly began to fog up, rubbing at them furiously before doing the same to his eyes, trying to fight the tears as much as possible. "It's so stupid, but I can't do this."

**It's not stupid.**

"It feels stupid."

**Of course it does. It's a typical teenage thinking process, especially when it comes to boys. **The Squip pulled him away from the sink, guiding him over to the tub. Instead of sitting on the edge of it, this time, Michael ended up climbing inside. Because sitting on the edge actually hurt. The Squip took a seat on the edge and crossed one leg over the other, watching him. **But I assure you, it's not stupid. You don't decide how you feel, you simply do. There's nothing stupid about it. It's what makes you…**

"Human?" Michael finished, unable to help but let out a soft, watery laugh as he put his glasses back on. "Sometimes I wish I wasn't human, then. It's a curse."

**Your emotions aren't a curse, Michael. They're part of who you are, **the Squip insisted. **And you shouldn't let anyone or anything allow you to believe that any part of who you are is stupid.**

"You say all this like you actually care," Michael murmured, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. "You're a computer. You don't process human emotions." He was just repeating what the Squip had told him before.

**I'm not supposed to. **There was a moment of silence while they both processed this, and then the Squip cleared its nonexistent throat. **Do you need a moment to calm down?**

Michael just nodded. On cue, the Squip pulled up another holographic screen. This time it was much smaller, and instead of a video game, it was playing one of Michael's favorite Star Wars movies. He quirked an eyebrow at the Squip, who merely shrugged. **You need some form of entertainment to relax.**

Michael went silent, focusing on the screen again. After a moment or so of silence, he took a deep breath and murmured, "thank you."

… **You're welcome.**

* * *

It was at least an hour this time before Michael managed to convince himself to leave. He stayed in the bathtub for a while after the Squip had shut the screen, looking down and wringing his hands together as he prepared himself for whatever would come when he stepped out the door. He still wasn't sure he'd even get the chance to speak to Jeremy. He hadn't seen him earlier, why would he now? Why would his Squip let him get drunk or high, knowing what it would do? The thoughts and questions raced through his head, almost working himself up into another anxiety attack, but stopped abruptly when he noticed the sudden silence from his Squip.

The thing was just sitting there, staring at nothing with wide, glitched over eyes. Michael blinked hesitantly, starting to push himself up, but the Squip snapped back to attention rather suddenly, causing Michael to jump. "JEEZ, DUDE!"

**Target male approaching. **The Squip moved aside, gesturing for Michael to pull the curtains shut. He did so reluctantly, and the Squip re-materialized in front of him in the bathtub, causing Michael to jump again. The Squip put a finger to its lips, shushing him, and Michael tooka deep breath but stayed silent.

A few minutes passed before the door opened - Michael jumped and flinched - and he heard the familiar mumbling voice of his former friend as the door shut. He sounded out of breath and terrified, immediately sparking concern from Michael. But when he started to get up, the Squip gestured for him to stay down. He stayed put, tense.

There was silence for a few more moments. Michael watched through a small crack in the curtains as Jeremy walked over and sat on the edge of the tub, seemingly trying to catch his breath, and he threw a helpless look toward the Squip. After a moment of silence, the Jeremy-lookalike finally nodded and Michael started to push himself up.

A sharp scream from Jeremy made him realize he'd accidentally grabbed his former friend's arm while doing so. He cursed under his breath as Jeremy scrambled back, and immediately pulled the curtains back to make sure he was okay. He was on the floor now, pushing himself back as he stared with wide eyes.

For the first time in months, their gazes met again, and Michael felt something inside him crack and mend at the same time. Jeremy's eyes were warmer than the Squip's, no glitches present, cheeks flushed and hair messy. He was breathing heavily, staring at Michael like he'd seen a ghost, and he might as well have.

Michael opened his mouth to speak, ask if he was okay, then kind of just panicked, awkwardness and anxiety taking over. "... 'Sup?"

The Squip facepalmed. Michael wanted to, too.

Jeremy let out a low, breathy sigh, slowly starting to relax. He kept his gaze on Michael, clearly not knowing what to say. Michael wondered for a moment if he could even see him… And then- "Michael?"

Michael's heart skipped a beat. He could. Jeremy could see him.

"I didn't know you were invited to this party?" Jeremy somehow made the words sound accusing, bewildered and disbelieving all at once. Michael shrugged slightly, glancing toward the Squip for a moment before putting his hands on the side of the tub and pushing himself up.

"I wasn't," he responded quietly, stepping out and dusting himself off. "Which is why I'm wearing this…" He gestured to himself. "... Clever disguise."

Jeremy just stared. Michael gazed back. He didn't know what else to say.

**You're speechless.**

_Yes, I am. _

**Not you. **The Squip actually laughed a little bit, then turned serious again. **Say that to him. "You're speechless". **Michael gave a skeptical look for a second, then took a deep breath and managed to step forward.

"You're speechless."

**Squip got your tongue? **

That was actually a good one. Michael offered Jeremy his hand, a little hesitant at first. "Squip got your tongue?"

"What?" Jeremy asked dumbly, then his eyes widened, reaching out and grasping Michael's hand. "No, it's…" He trailed off as Michael pulled him to his feet, staring at him with an unreadable expression. "It's off."

Michael had already figured that, actually. He snapped his fingers and shoved his hands into his pockets. "That would explain why you're talking to me," he muttered. Then he continued, repeating after the Squip. "I was thinking about this moment. What I was gonna say to you?" He took a deep breath and walked past him, running his fingers through his hair. "I had this really, pissed off monologue…" He spared a glance at the Squip, who nodded, then turned back to Jeremy. "An epic journey through twelve years of friendship-"

He stopped. Because Jeremy was staring at him silently, his expression softer than Michael expected. And because the Squip had held a hand up to stop him.

"... What?"

"You know, it's just-" Jeremy cut off, and let out a slightly choked sounding laugh. Michael was stunned to see tears brewing in his eyes. "It's just really great to see you, man." He let out a breathless laugh, looking down. He didn't see Michael's expression change, pure pain flashing through the boy's eyes as he faltered, a lump rising in his throat.

The Squip put a hand on his shoulder, and Michael took a deep breath and braced himself. He could do this later. "Well, it won't be… When you hear what I found out."

"Found out?" Jeremy's eyebrows furrowed together, pushing his hands into his pockets for a moment as he stared.

"About…" Michael gestured, tapping a finger against his own head, and watched Jeremy's eyes widen, a look of understanding crossing his face.

"... How? There's nothing on the internet about-"

"Which is weird, right?!" Michael interrupted suddenly, despite the Squip's protests. Of course, Michael had eventually found _some _stuff on the internet, but it had taken him a lot of time and hacking to do so. "I mean, what's _not _on the internet?" Jeremy shrugged, looking down, and Michael paused to look toward the Squip, eyebrows raising.

The Squip hummed. **Tell him about that friend of yours, the one with the brother in the mental hospital.**

And Michael did. "So I started asking around." He looked down, rubbing his hands together, then glanced up to meet Jeremy's gaze. "And, finally, this guy I play Warcraft with? He told me his brother went from a straight D student, to a Freshman at Harvard." He paused again, then asked quietly, "you know where he is now?"

He watched Jeremy process this information, blue eyes flickering silently before he spoke again. "Really happy and successful?"

Michael couldn't even bring himself to laugh at the innocence. "... He's in a mental hospital." The second he said that, Jeremy's face fell to a horrified look before he suddenly masked it again. Michael watched him carefully, frowning. "Totally lost it."

A moment of tense silence passed between them. The Squip was glancing between the two, eyes narrowed. Michael took the chance to finally realize how weird it was to be staring at two Jeremys, even if one of them was a holographic supercomputer.

Finally, Jeremy spoke again, and Michael was surprised by the amount of irritation in his voice. "Alright, well, I don't see what that has to do with me and my Sq-"

"Think, man!" Michael interrupted, once more echoing the Squip, and paused when Jeremy flinched. But he didn't stop. "We're talking, an insanely powerful supercomputer! You think its primary function is to get you _laid_?" The Squip nodded encouragingly, and Michael went on, "who made them? How did they end up in a high school? In New Jersey?"

**Kids like Richard Goranski, **the Squip muttered. "**Of all possible applications for such a mind-blowingly advanced technology…"**

Michael repeated it, a little more quietly, and added, "... You ever wonder what it's doing inside of _you_?"

Both Michael _and _the Squip were taken aback when Jeremy suddenly scoffed and looked down, sliding a half-step back and letting out a low, shaky sounding sigh. "And I thought _Chloe _was jealous."

Michael blinked. "I'm honestly asking."

"Oh, really?" Jeremy challenged, glancing back up.

"Yeah."

"Well, I think you're just pissed off," Jeremy growled, lips curling into a faint sneer as his eyes narrowed at Michael, colder than he'd ever seen before. "That I have one, and you don't."

Oh, Michael almost wanted to start laughing. But he also felt sick. Jeremy had never spoken to him this way - not seriously, at least. And it hurt. He replied anyway, his voice strained. "Come _on_."

"Hey, maybe I got lucky, alright?" Jeremy snapped, gesturing wildly at nothing in particular as he stepped forward. Michael stepped back, surprised. "Is that so weird? I mean, with my history, I would say that the universe owed me one! And look, I don't know about your- your friend's brother's whatever, but if you're telling me that his Squip made him crazy-"

Michael felt like he was about to drown. "The Squip didn't make him crazy-"

"Alright, well there you go!"

Despite the Squip's protests to back off, Michael finally yelled, "he went crazy trying to get it _out_!"

Jeremy reeled back, and the Squip shook its head wildly, trying to catch Michael's gaze. Michael just stared, breathing heavy and trying to keep his tears back as he stared at Jeremy, silently praying that he'd stop and listen for a second. Then, after a moment, his expression froze over again, and he straightened up, crossing his arms. "Well, then, I've got nothing to worry about. Why would I want that?"

He turned toward the door. But Michael, panicking, stepped forward, blocking him before he could leave. He just had to get him to listen to him. He was so close.

"Come on, man," Jeremy scoffed, glaring down at the shorter boy. "Move it."

Despite how threatening he tried to sound, Michael was a little more confident now. Jeremy wouldn't hurt him. He never had, not once. "... Or you'll what?"

**Michael-**

Too late. Jeremy was in his face, hands gripping Michael's shirt, pulling him up to come face to face with him completely. Michael's breathing hitched, and for the first time, staring into his ex-best friend's cold eyes, he felt… terrified. Of Jeremy. "Get _out _of my _way,_" Jeremy spoke slow and precise, dropping Michael and pushing him to the side. He stumbled, managing to grab the edge of the sink to steady himself. "_Loser_."

The door slammed shut. Michael flinched, staying completely still.

The Squip was watching him. Quiet, careful. Gauging his reaction, his thoughts. It actually looked concerned. Michael didn't say a word, just pushed himself away from the sink to lock the door again. It rattled as soon as he did, and he flinched, stepping back.

"_Hello? Some of us have to pee!"_

Michael wasn't in the mood to wait for the Squip to come up with a reply, so he said the first thing that came to his mind. "I'm having my period."

"_... Take your time, honey."_

He exhaled, hearing the footsteps fade into the distance, and looked around. His gaze caught the cup he'd set on the sink. A perfect fix, actually.

**Are you sure that's a good idea? **The Squip asked quietly, still watching him. Michael had never been more sure of anything in his entire life. He needed to be numb. He needed it to stop. And he didn't have weed with him, so this was the only thing he could think of. He gave a stiff, short nod to the Squip, grabbing the cup without a word.

… **Very well. **The Squip closed its eyes. **I'm sorry, Mell.**

Michael simply downed the entire cup and watched the Squip glitch out of sight. And then he was just Michael in the bathroom, Michael in the bathroom by himself.

All by himself…

* * *

A few hours later, Michael was honestly ready to just give up and call the bathroom his new home when the Squip reappeared. Dammit, he wasn't drunk enough. He hadn't wanted to go out and risk running into Jeremy again, so he kind of just stayed in there and ignored anyone who knocked on the door. It made him feel bad, but he couldn't go out and face the crowd. Not yet.

"What?" Michael sighed when the Squip appeared. He wasn't mad at it, though he wanted to be. He was only mad at himself. He shouldn't have needed a supercomputer's help in the first place. He should have known how to help his best friend without it. The Squip sighed and sat down on the edge of the tub, watching him.

**"I'm sorry."**

"Don't be." Michael gestured dismissively and looked down, rubbing his hands together and closing his eyes. "He doesn't want to be helped. I just-" he laughed a little, the sound catching in his throat. "I don't know how to help someone who doesn't want it, you know?"

The Squip nodded understandingly, then opened its mouth. Only to stop and turn abruptly. Without any warning, though, it suddenly jumped up, its expression glitching over for a moment before a look of pure terror crossed its face. **"****We need to leave."**

"What?" Michael struggled to push himself up, confused. "Why?"

**"Now!"**


	5. Chapter 5

The Squip was guilty. It was angry. It was worried. All things it wasn't supposed to be. It hovered near Michael all night after he'd fallen asleep, keeping his dreams nightmare-free for the boy's sake, knowing that was about the best it could do to help right then. It paced, rubbed its head, cursed itself and tried to focus. Visions of the burning house flashed through his mind, pulling up a screen with the latest news and scrolling to make sure nobody had gotten badly hurt. Nobody was dead, but Richard Goranski and Jake Dillinger were both in the hospital. Jake with two broken legs and Rich in a whole-body cast. Of course, he started the fire. He would have gotten the worst of it.

The Squip stared in disbelief, pain flickering through its eyes. It didn't even process that these were human emotions, things it wasn't supposed to be feeling. All it knew was that it was horrified that a Squip could push their user to do this without hesitation. That it could be so horrible that they thought there was no way out except death.

It looked at Michael, silent. The boy had gotten lucky, getting stuck with one of the newer models, at least. Yes, the Squip was a dick, but that was all part of its charm. It would never, not in a million years, do anything to purposefully harm any of its users. Especially not one like Michael. The kid was going to change the world one day, it was sure of it.

The Squip closed the screen and sat down at the edge of Michael's bed. Their plan had failed, but with any luck, they could still get through to Jeremy. Hopefully before he became like Rich. Before he decided that ending his life was the way to go. The Squip figured that, with any luck, Jeremy would turn to Michael before anything. There was still a bond there. Michael may have lost hope, but the Squip refused to believe that their friendship of twelve years could just end abruptly like that.

It was going to assist Michael, and it was going to do so in the best way possible. After all, it was literally the only reason it existed in the first place.

* * *

Michael ignored the sound of his mothers banging on the door to the basement. Ignored the guilt clawing at his heart. Ignored everything around him. He was supposed to be at school, but he wasn't. After about three weeks of once more trying to get Jeremy's attention after the party - and being ignored and shut down instantly - he'd just decided to stop going. So he was now going over the board of information on the wall, flinching with each pound on the door and each time his mothers called his name.

**They're worried about you.**

"I know." Shit, his high had worn off. Michael turned to go for the joint he'd laid on his desk, but the Squip stopped him, stepping forward and placing a hand on Michael's arm. It was harder to see the Squip now, too. They were both out of options here. "Come on…"

**Why have you given up so easily? **The Squip shook its head, blocking his way completely. Michael sighed, but he stepped back and turned back to look at the board, studying the info he'd pulled up on the Squips.

"Why haven't you?" He finally asked, looking down. "It's hopeless. I can't help Jeremy if he keeps pushing me away. He can't even see me, man. What am I supposed to do?"

**Keep **_**trying**_**, **the Squip insisted.

"I _did_," Michael snapped, turning his glare back to the Squip. "I did try, okay? I tried like hell. For months! But I can't do it anymore. I can't. It's stupid and selfish but I can't. He doesn't want my help, he doesn't want me. The best thing I can do now is just step out of his life. _That's _what he wants." He moved past him to grab the joint.

**He **_**needs**_ **you.**

"Try telling him that."

**Michael. Come on. **The Squip stepped forward again as Michael picked up the joint, looking concerned. **You can't give up on him that easily, sport. I know you can do this. You just have to keep trying. He **_**needs **_**your help, whether he knows it or not.**

Michael went silent for a moment, staring down. "I can't do anything anyway. I don't have the Mountain Dew Red."

**The shipment comes in a week. **

"And how do I get it to him after that?" Michael demanded, closing his eyes as a painful ache went through his chest. He took in a breath and let it out slowly, sighing as he opened his eyes again and shook his head. "Again, he won't even acknowledge me."

**We'll think of something. We always do, don't we? **The Squip stepped forward again, searching his gaze. Michael looked up at it, silent. **I know we failed last time. That's on me. **

Michael opened his mouth to protest.

**-It is, **the Squip insisted. **But this time, we'll get it right. And if we don't, we'll keep going until we do. It's not going to be easy, but Michael… Try. Okay? Try.**

Michael looked at the Squip, then back at the board, silent for a moment. "I'm sorry, Red." With that, he turned and grabbed the joint. The Squip flickered out of sight before he'd even brought it to his lips.

* * *

It was a very long time before Michael stopped using drugs and alcohol to keep the Squip - who he'd ended up nicknaming Red (Because of Mountain Dew Red) - at bay. He wanted to face it. Him. _Him_. He wanted to face the thing that had acted as a friend, a parent, to him, the past few months. He wanted it to yell at him, to tell him how worthless he was, how pathetic and stupid and idiotic and how he needed to just get over Jeremy, get over all of it. That he was a selfish dick. Because that's what he felt like. And it's what he deserved. So when he came down from his high with a hangover from hell, he looked down at his hands and prepared himself to be screamed at, the punishment he undoubtedly deserved.

Instead, when Red appeared, Michael was shocked to find one arm wrapped around him tightly. He didn't question how a holographic supercomputer could touch him, let alone hug him. He didn't question why he was being hugged. Because the moment he was in the damn thing's arms, tears rushed to his eyes.

And Red held him close through all of it, shushing him and rubbing circles in his back as if trying to comfort him. And maybe he was. Michael couldn't even fathom why. It wasn't made to comfort him. He hadn't gotten it to comfort him. He hadn't expected it to. He'd expected shouting. Anger. Something he deserved. Not this.

"**This **_**is **_**what you deserve," **Red muttered, taking a deep breath and pulling back when Michael had finally managed to compose himself. The Squip watched as he removed his glasses, rubbing at his eyes silently, and stayed still and silent until Michael could focus on him again.

"Not really," Michael managed a quiet laugh, hollow and broken. "I know what I deserve. This? This isn't it."

"**I know you have complications in realizing your worth, Michael." **The Squip's eyes narrowed. "**But I promise you, we'll fix that."**

"No," Michael let out a low, shaky sigh. "No… I wanted- I need to apologize. I've been going about this the wrong way. I think…" He trailed off, looking down, and closed his eyes. He couldn't continue, but he didn't need to. Red was silent, processing his memories, and he could hear the shock in the Squip's tone as it spoke.

"**You're… getting rid of me."**

"The Mountain Dew Red is at Spencer's Gifts. I'm going to get it tomorrow. I don't need you anymore." Michael blinked his eyes open. And instantly regretted the words as he spoke them, because a hurt look crossed Red's face as he stared.

"**And what about Jeremy?" **Red pressed, eyebrows knitting together. "**He needs you."** He settled down beside Michael - who was currently seated on his porch, a large bucket in front of him, a fire lit inside and a stack of papers and photos beside him. Red stared at all of this, clearly still processing, then swallowed and looked down at his hands as the realization hit. "**Michael…"**

"He doesn't want me, Red," Michael murmured despairingly. "And I don't want to keep you around just… uselessly. You should be helping someone who really needs it."

"**You **_**do**_ **need it," **Red protested. "**Jeremy needs it."**

"He's not acting like it."

"**Because he thinks he knows what he **_**wants**_**," **Red protested. "**He thinks he wants all of this, being popular and cool and getting the girl. But the Squip is damaging him. Not just physically or even emotionally. It could cause severe damage to him mentally, too."**

"Jeremy's stronger than you take him for." Michael looked down, picking up a Magic the Gathering card Jeremy had given him for his tenth birthday. His mothers had been out of town and the babysitter hadn't even been aware that it was his birthday. Nobody else knew. And then Jeremy had showed up at his door with the card and a cupcake. A lump rose in Michael's throat as he tossed the card into the bin, and Red flinched faintly.

"**So you're just giving up on him?" **Red asked quietly.

"I don't _want _to. I want to help him. But I really don't know how." Michael took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. He threw a few more things in while the two of them sat in silence, Red processing and Michael giving him some time to think. They were both silent until a familiar voice yelled out Michael's name, making Michael flinch. Red let out a sigh.

"Michael!"

**Mr. Heere.**

"Mr. Heere?" Michael's head snapped up, and in an instant, he was up on his feet, pushing the box of Jeremy-stuff away and stepping forward to greet Jeremy's father. "What are you doing here?" He turned faintly as Red rose up beside him, looking Mr. Heere up and down wordlessly and stepping forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Michael.

Michael also noticed Jeremy's father wasn't wearing pants, per usual. And that he wasn't wearing pants either…

**Nice.**

_Shut up…_

Michael could have sworn that Red smiled right then, but he wasn't sure.

"Uh-" Mr. Heere raised a hand, looking breathless as he doubled over, hands on his knees. Michael waited, eyebrows raised, and Mr. Heere finally straightened up and cleared his throat. "We need to talk. About Jeremy."

Michael had to force himself not to flinch, instinctively stepping back and crossing his arms over his chest, like some sort of protective shield. "Sorry. Jeremy and I aren't friends anymore."

**Michael, wait. Listen to him. **Red's eyes were wide. Michael hesitated.

Mr. Heere just furrowed his eyebrows. "Do you love him?"

And so Michael just kind of stared in dumbfounded confusion at that. Love him. Did he love Jeremy. What kind of love, exactly, was he talking about? Romantic or platonic? Probably platonic, right? That was the most reasonable explanation? Michael wasn't _that _obvious, was he? Or was Jeremy just super oblivious? No, no, Michael couldn't be that obvious. His mind was racing, working double time for an answer, and yet all he could come up with was- "what."

Mr. Heere continued, seeming unfazed. "He can be a little shit sometimes, we both know that. But that's no excuse to sit around burning incense while he turns himself into a monster-"

**I like him, **Red decided, **you should listen to him.**

Michael just shook his head, taking a deep breath and turning away. "Yeah, I'm gonna go-"

At that moment, both Red _and _Mr. Heere reached out. Michael felt Red's hand first, not exactly stopping him, since of course it was all in Michael's head - but Mr. Heere _did _pull him to a stop, turning him around to face both of them. Now Red and Mr. Heere were side by side - looking just like Jeremy and his dad, and Michael glanced between them desperately, torn.

"I need you," Mr. Heere told him, just as desperate as Michael felt. "I don't have the tools to help with what he's going through, Michael… but I know you. You know him. You can help him."

"But I'm not what he wants." Michael frowned, starting to shrug him off.

"But you're just what he _needs_," Mr. Heere insisted, and at this, Red's lips curled into a soft smile. Michael faltered, turning his gaze to the Squip for a moment, who nodded vaguely in confirmation. "This might be hard, I know… But you have to suck it up and go."

"I…" Michael sighed, looking away. Mr. Heere pulled away abruptly and went over to where Michael had been sitting. The boy felt his face flush red as Jeremy's father looked into the box of stuff, of pictures of him and Jeremy, and opened his mouth to offer an explanation. The Squip, however, raised a hand to stop him, watching with a smile.

"When you love somebody…" Mr. Heere sighed and pulled a picture out of the box. "You put your pants on for them." He turned and held the picture out so Michael could see.

Michael blinked at him, then looked down, silent. The picture was him and Jeremy, side by side. And it was recent, just a few weeks before his friend had gotten the Squip. Jeremy had an arm wrapped around him, a beaming smile on his face and his eyes shut gleefully, his cheek pressed against Michael's and his tongue sticking halfway out of his mouth, fingers tangled into Michael's hair and the other hand doing a peace symbol in front of him. Beside him, Michael looked just as giddy, a faint flush on his cheeks and his eyes open, staring straight into the camera with a smile wider than ever before.

Michael's gaze lingered on Jeremy's face, the earlier pain dissolving into something a little warmer. Longing.

**You can't tell me… **Red shuffled forward beside him, nudging his shoulder. **That he doesn't want you. I refuse to believe that twelve years of friendship can be forgotten so easily. **

Michael just let out a shaky sigh, tears blurring his vision. He looked back up, removing his glasses to rub his eyes as he focused on Mr. Heere again, taking the photo from him somewhat reluctantly.

"I need you to reach out to him." Mr. Heere told him, a hand on Michael's shoulder now. Michael put his glasses back on, nodding faintly now. "Jeremy won't listen to me, and…" Jeremy's father trailed off. "Can't blame him, but… Someone has to watch his back." He gave a tiny smile.

Michael managed a hesitant smile in response, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly before narrowing his eyes. "... If I try harder to be his friend," he started, lowering the photo. "Then you have to try harder to be his dad."

Red's smile had broken into a full-force grin at that point, wide, hopeful eyes focused on Michael. The boy managed a tiny smile before turning serious again.

"There's a Kohl's down the street. I don't care what kind. Jeans. Khaki. Leather." Michael looked up, meeting Mr. Heere's gaze through narrowed eyes. "You're not leaving that store until you buy a pair."

Jeremy's father was silent for a long time before he stepped forward, holding a hand out with a smile. "You drive a hard bargain, son," he joked.

Michael looked down at his hand wordlessly for a second or so, before a nudge from the Squip snapped him back to attention. He stepped forward, reaching his free hand up and clasping it around Mr. Heere's. "When you love somebody…" He sighed. "You put your pants on for them."

"Wear those pants!" Mr. Heere cheered, and Michael actually laughed a little despite himself, eyebrows furrowing. After a moment, Mr. Heere cleared his throat and stepped back. "I… Will be at Kohl's." With that, he turned and headed off. Michael watched him go, waving a brief goodbye and watching until he turned around the corner, out of sight. Then, sighing, the boy looked down at the photo that was still in his hand, mouth twisting slightly as he thought.

"**Well?" **Red stepped forward, putting a hand on Michael's arm. He stayed still for a moment before looking up, meeting the Squip's gaze again. "**What are you gonna do?"**

"_We_," Michael corrected, a faint smile appearing on his face. "Are going to Spencer's Gifts."

Red practically lit up. But there was more than relief to his expression - Michael couldn't decipher it, and it confused him for a second, but he pushed it aside. "**That's my boy."**

Michael just snorted and turned to head down the porch steps.

"**Michael."**

Michael paused. "Yes?"

"**Pants."**

"... Oh, yeah."


	6. Chapter 6

"Boom!" Michael sang, slamming the Mountain Dew Red down onto the dining room table in front of him. It was a large 2 liter. He'd wanted to get a six pack, but Red had insisted that he needed the 2 liter. Michael didn't bother asking, because he knew he'd get the same response of _my quantum processor allows me to envision probable futures. _So he did as Red told him, getting the 2 liter and heading back to his house. His mothers were out, thankfully, so that left him and Red alone to plan. "One bottle of Mountain Dew Red." He looked up at the Squip, who was standing on the other side of the table, an odd expression on his face. "What?"

"**Huh?" **Red blinked, shaking his head and snapping back to attention. "**Merely processing, Mell. Considering each outcome." **He leaned forward, crossing his arms over the table. "**My connection to Jeremy's Squip allows me to envision futures with him in it. If I'm correct…" **Red's face fell for a second. "**... Jeremy's Super Quantum Unit Intel Processor is trying to take over the school."**

"What?" Michael stared at him, genuinely terrified now. "What do you mean take over the school, Red?"

"**Richard Goranski had a shoebox of the old Squip models in his locker. According to my calculations, Jeremy's Squip is going to use those on the students at the Play. Specifically Christine. It's part of his plan in helping Jeremy achieve his goal."**

"Oh my God…" Michael felt sick at the thought. Helping Jeremy was one thing - how was he supposed to save the entire school…? After a second, though, he shoved the doubt away. He would do what he needed to do. Jeremy needed him. Right?

"**Right." **The Squip took a deep breath. "**And, anyway, I have an idea. The Play isn't until tomorrow. So we have some time to think about this."**

"Great." Michael leaned forward, clasping his hands together. "What's the plan, tic-tac?"

* * *

Despite only having half a day to plan, Red thought they'd definitely made a breakthrough.

Honestly, he was just glad to be working side by side with Michael again. The boy was still slightly hesitant, he could feel it, but Red was certain that he wasn't backing down this time. His thoughts were no longer just fixated on Jeremy. Instead, as they stayed up and worked, Red could hear that the majority of Michael's worries extended to the entire school, what would become of all the innocent students when they were unknowingly forced to be part of the human slave army that Jeremy's Squip was raising.

Red had let Michael stay up all night to plan, but he made sure he ate and made him take a shower before the planning had even begun. Red wouldn't tolerate Michael not taking care of himself. And yet, he was still denying that he cared. He wasn't _supposed _to care. Most of the time was spent with Michael playing video games on the large, holographic screen Red pulled up for him while the Squip processed and calculated every possible outcome to each of their plans.

By the time morning came, Michael was laying in bed on his back with his gaze on the ceiling, looking exhausted but determined, and Red was staring out the window, trying to ignore the fact that he might actually be more anxious than the boy right then. They had set a plan, though. They were ready. The Play started at 3:15 precisely. So Michael would need to suck it up and get through probably the most painfully slow day _ever_ before they could begin.

"**Rise and shine, slugger," **Red murmured, watching Michael's head turn toward him as he turned back to face the boy. "**Today's gonna be a big day."**

Michael managed a smile at the familiar words, and the way he was looking at him, with such warmth in his eyes, it made Red smile slightly in response. "You know, I never thought I'd miss hearing your annoying ass say those words."

Red just chuckled, crossing his arms. "**Come on," **he said warmly, walking forward and gesturing to Michael's closet. The boy jumped up without hesitation and headed over to grab some clothes out to change, and Red grinned. "**I think you've been neglecting one piece of clothing in particular."**

On cue, Michael pulled out his signature red hoodie, grinning as he ran his fingers over the rainbow patch on the shoulder. "Indeed I have, Red, indeed I have."

"**Go brush your teeth and get dressed." **Red crossed his arms behind his head, nodding toward the stairs. "**I will go see what is acceptable for you to cook for breakfast." **Michael just gave a thumbs up and headed for the bathroom, and the Squip allowed himself to flicker out of the basement, re-materializing in the kitchen. He did a brief scan of the house, nodding when he saw that Michael's mothers had already gone to work. They were both very sweet women, but Michael needed to focus today without them questioning him on his odd behavior recently.

He scanned the cabinets with his x-ray vision, silent as he looked around. He was going to miss the boy when he deactivated. But it was what would need to be done. After all of this, Michael would no longer need him. He would have fulfilled his purpose. And… to be honest, it was something no Squip had ever done before. Seriously. They were new technology, and most malfunctioned and freaked out on the users. There had never been a Squip to succeed in fulfilling their purpose and their user's goals.

Red hoped he would be the first. Michael deserved to have his friend back. And those innocent kids deserved their freedom.

He was silent until Michael came up the stairs, dressed and ready with his backpack slung over one shoulder, combing his hair. "You look like you're brooding."

"**I am not," **Red assured him, crossing his arms and turning back to Michael. He forced a smile, not even knowing why. "**How does sausage and biscuits sound to you?"**

Michael raised an eyebrow. "... Pretty good, actually."

* * *

The rest of the day, for the both of them, was so achingly and unbearably long. For Michael, it was hard to see Jeremy walking down the halls, smiling and laughing as if everything was normal and happy, talking to Jake and Jenna. For Red, it was hard to watch the Squip trailing behind Jeremy, nothing but a devious smile on its face and no longer sparing even a faintest look in their direction. It was focused, solely, on the task at hand. And so was Red.

Most of the day went by in silence, with a few words exchanged between Michael and the Squip at lunch and in between classes. Red, as usual, would offer his assistance with Michael's homework. Michael, as usual, would turn the offer down. They continued with their usual banter, pretending to be annoyed at each other and trading snarky, sarcastic comments and playful glares.

When it was time for the last bell to ring, accompanied an announcement over the speakers for the students to gather for the Play, they stood anxiously in the emptied halls and watched everyone else file through the doors. The last one was Jeremy.

Michael watched, tense, as his former friend seemed to hesitate, his fingers lingering on the doorknob to open the door, his other hand clutching the shoebox. He wanted to run up, to stop him… but he knew it was useless. Even if Jeremy could see him, it wasn't time yet. The plan wasn't ready.

Red watched as well. Watched as the Squip put a hand on Jeremy's shoulder, and, on cue, the boy visibly flinched and straightened up, an electric blue taking over the warmer shade in his eyes as his mouth set into a firm line, shoving the door open and marching inside. For a split second, the Squip paused and turned toward Red, arms clasped behind its back and a faint grin appearing on its lips before it glitched out and disappeared after him.

Michael took a deep breath, easily distracting Red from his thoughts. _How long?_

**Half an hour. **Red turned, surveying the empty hallway before looking at Michael's backpack, seated beside his feet. **Get it ready. **He didn't have to tell him twice. Michael was already fishing through the bag for the 2 liter, managing to fit it in the large front pocket of his hoodie and giving a thumbs up as he did so. He looked more nervous than Red would have liked.

**It's okay to be scared, Mell.**

_I'm not scared. _Michael closed his eyes. He seemed to know that lying wasn't really any use, but he also seemed to be trying to convince himself. Red fell silent for a moment, leaning against the wall and watching him. _I just wish I knew what was going on in there._

After a moment of thought, Red turned and pulled up a large screen. It glitched for a second before clearing up, and the Squip gave a victorious smile as he managed to pull up the footage from the security cameras inside the room. Michael shuffled forward anxiously to watch, nibbling on his thumb and shoving the other hand in his pocket as if to assure himself that the Mountain Dew Red was there.

"The Squips…" Michael sounded shocked. "I can see them."

**You're welcome. **Red flashed him a smile, earning an eyeroll in response, and the two fell silent after that, watching the events unfold on the screen. They watched Christine get up in front of the audience, watched her go backstage, watched her talk to Jeremy, Jeremy offer her a Squip, Christine turn him down.

"_What's… wrong with me now?"_

"Good for you, girl," Michael whispered, eyebrows knitting together. "Good for you."

**I can see what Jeremy sees in her.**

Michael faltered for a second at that, but he nodded all the same, a hesitant smile appearing on his face. "Yeah."

Red glanced at him, then gave a soft smile and nudged his shoulder against the boy's. **She's got nothing on you, Mell. **He didn't get much of a response, just a faintly doubtful look - although grateful all the same - before they turned back to watching. Red could feel it in the way he tensed up beside him, the more kids that were Squipped, the more anxious he was to run in and help. But he waited. All for the plan.

**Listen, Michael… **Red started, but he couldn't seem to finish, realizing he didn't know what he really wanted to say. Michael turned to look at him for a second, his attention turning from the screen to Red in an instant.

"You've barely started speaking and it already sounds like a goodbye speech," he commented quietly after a moment of silence, looking stunned when Red didn't answer, just stared at him. "Wait, hold up, tic-tac…"

**We don't have to talk about this now.**

"Yes, we do," Michael insisted, now looking a little bit anxious. "What are you going to do, Red?"

Red sighed, crossing his arms and looking away. **When the Super Quantum Unit Intel Processors are all activated, I'll need to sync with them in order to connect all of them. If they're all connected, they'll all go down at once. **

Michael blinked, going silent for a moment, clearly not knowing what that really meant. At least, for a few seconds. Red saw it the moment he figured it out, saw his pupils shrink and his eyebrows furrow together in horror. "Red, no."

**Michael… **Red took a deep breath and let it out slowly, despite not really even having to breathe at all. **When all this is over, you won't need me anymore.**

"I'm not just going to let you- let you sacrifice yourself!"

**You're not the only one that gets to be selfless.**

"Like hell I-"

They both stopped, visibly flinching when they both heard a sharp yell from the screen. Michael's head whipped around first, recognizing the voice with ease. It was Jeremy. Michael watched, wide-eyed, as he pulled out his phone, yelling something about calling Michael. Red stared in silence as the screen on the phone glitched out, and all too suddenly, Jeremy was on his knees with the Squip towering above him, as terrifying as ever.

"_I'm going to improve your life, Jeremy, if I have to take over the entire student body to do it!" _

Red's eyes hardened. **Now.**

"Now?" Michael jumped, looking startled, but he didn't hesitate, stepping toward the door. "_Now_ now? Like, start-the-plan now-"

**Mell. Go!**

"Got it!" Michael whirled around and pushed the doors open. Red wasted no time in following, shutting the holographic screen behind them and squaring his shoulders as the doors slammed shut behind them.

* * *

Before you continue, I need you to do something for me. I need you to believe in the impossible.

Can you do that?

Good.

A few months ago, Michael would never have believed, not in a million years, that he'd get attached to a Squip. In his mind, the things were evil. Dysfunctional. They didn't belong in the world. Technology like this could only be used for bad. In his mind, the person who'd created these things was some kind of evil mastermind hellbent on controlling the world, possibly from behind a screen while a bunch of holographic tic-tac robots rose up and took over everything that humanity had worked for, starting with a simple, small school in the middle of New Jersey. That was what Michael believed.

"Michael makes an _entrance_!"

Now he stood side by side with one of the things he'd assumed to be evil. He stood confidently, taking comfort in knowing it was beside him, knowing it was helping him through this. Michael never would have believed it if he wasn't right there, living all of it. And yet, somewhere in his mind, he acknowledged that part of this felt like some bad dream he'd never wake up from.

"_Michael_!"

His best friend had never sounded happier to see him, never sounded more relieved than he did right then. It took Michael barely any time at all to rush forward, pushing his way through the crowd to get to his best friend. He could still see the Squip - who had backed up from Jeremy immediately, looking very confused at the turn of events - but his attention was focused only on Jeremy as he knelt down to help his best friend up.

**Remember what we talked about, Michael. **

Michael turned his head just slightly, watching Red glitch out of sight, possibly to interact with the other Squips. He took a deep breath and turned back to Jeremy, who was staring at him, wide-eyed. On cue, Michael flashed his usual beaming smile. "I was just in the audience, thinking, _this is pretty good for a school play_," he joked, "then I was like- _this is way too good for a school play_!"

Jeremy actually laughed at that, breathless, amused and relieved all at once. Michael felt every part of him warm up as he was pulled into a hug, tighter than he'd ever been hugged before. And he wanted to hug back, to stay in that embrace forever. But he knew he couldn't. There were more pressing matters right then.

"They've all been Squipped, right?" Michael pulled back, keeping a hand on Jeremy's shoulder and giving another soft smile.

"Yeah- Wait." Jeremy blinked, his eyes widening slightly, and Michael's eyebrows raised, slightly anxious. But then Jeremy asked, "you came to see me in the play?" With such heartbreaking disbelief, as if he couldn't even fathom why Michael would want to see him at all, which almost made Michael want to pull him into his arms again. Instead, he grinned.

"Even brought my own refreshments." Michael stepped back, pulling the bottle of Mountain Dew Red out of his pocket and holding it up. And he watched Jeremy's expression change, turning from disbelieving to shocked to pure relief in an instant.

"Is that…"

"Mountain Dew Red!" Michael grinned. "Told you I did my research." Hah, now it was his turn to say _I told you so._

"That's amazing!" Jeremy exclaimed, sounding awed and relieved as he stepped forward. "Give it to me!"

"Okay-"

**WAIT!**

"Wait?" Michael jerked back, startled, and watched Jeremy's expression morph into one of pure confusion. Michael, meanwhile, didn't really know what to think, his eyes darting around for Red, pupils shrunk. "No!"

**Michael, I'm sorry! But you have to wait!**

_Why?!_

"What?" Jeremy was speaking now, again, heartbreaking, looking like a kicked puppy as he stepped forward again, staring at Michael with wide eyes. Michael stared back, torn between giving it to him or listening to the Squip. "But I- I need it!"

**I haven't completely synced them together! Michael, please. Buy us some time, or none of this is going to work!**

Michael made a split second decision, jerking back again and trying to ignore the way Jeremy's hurt expression tore at his heartstrings. "... And I need an apology," he managed, the words feeling bitter on his tongue. He wanted to bash his head into the wall. He wanted to chuck the Mountain Dew Red at Jeremy - Hell, he wanted to pour it down his throat all at once. "I- I mean, I think that's in order," he added quickly, forcing the words out. "You treat me like I don't exist for months, blow me off when I try to help you-"

"Okay, okay, okay, okay, fine!" Jeremy cut him off, looking more desperate than ever now. Michael wasn't sure how long he could last, to be honest. "I'm sor-"

Michael wasn't supposed to hear the zap, wasn't supposed to hear the sharp gasp of pain from Jeremy as he doubled over and covered his mouth, unable to speak. Michael stood still, his grip on the Mountain Dew Red tightening. _HURRY UP!_

**I'm trying! **Red sounded as desperate and pained as Michael felt right then. **I'm trying, Michael, just- keep stalling!**

Michael screwed his eyes shut for a second. "Seriously? Is it that hard to say sorry?"

"Yes!" Jeremy exclaimed forcefully, looking anguished. "Come on, man, this is _important_!" He stepped forward again, blue eyes alight with pain.

"It's important to me," Michael whispered, fighting against all of his instincts right then.

"It's a word!"

"It's a gesture. Gestures matter."

Jeremy stared at him desperately, looking like he was trying to find something to say but… He just couldn't. Michael took a deep breath. _Are you done? _There was silence, no response. Michael blinked, distracted. … _Red?_

He stopped, startled, when Jeremy's Squip spoke up rather suddenly, not seeming to know Michael could hear and see it.

"**Kung Fu fists: Activate."**

_That's a thing?_

The first punch that Jeremy threw at him, Michael dodged. The second one, he didn't get so lucky. He jumped back, stumbling along the stage and trying not to trip over his own feet as he tried to get away while Jeremy attacked him, teeth clenched. _Red, hurry the fuck up! _

"This is so like you!" Jeremy was growling as he lunged forward, but Michael managed to put some distance between them, grabbing a chair to block him and once more looking around for Red. "You just thing you're superior because you eat eel in your sushi, and listen to music on vinyl, and you don't care about being popular!"

Michael's eyes widened, distracted, and turned back to him, stunned as he lowered the chair. "Of course I care!" He protested. "I just know it's never gonna happen!"

"So you resent me because I won't give up like you did?!" Jeremy yelled, grabbing the chair and trying to yank it from him. Michael's grip tightened instinctively, still struggling to hold onto the Mountain Dew Red with his other hand as he tugged back.

"No, I don't _resent _you!" Michael exclaimed. "I'm jealous you try!"

"Well, I'm jealous you don't!" Jeremy managed to pull the chair away, throwing another punch. Michael just barely managed to dodge. Then he gasped when Jeremy grabbed him by the front of his shirt and slammed him back against the wall with enough force to knock his breath away momentarily.

"Then why are you hitting me?!"

"I'm not trying to!" Michael swore he saw tears brewing in his friend's eyes, and it made him feel worse than ever.

"Well, don't try harder!" Michael grabbed his wrist with his free hand, trying to pull him off and flinching as Jeremy's hand rose to hit him again.

"It's-" Jeremy gritted his teeth, the electric blue sparking in his eyes again. "Not me! It's my-" He stopped again, then the blue suddenly flickered out. "_Squip_!"

Michael flinched slightly again, his grip on the Mountain Dew Red tightening. _Red, come on, help me out here!_

"AH!" Jeremy jerked back suddenly, doubling over and putting his head in his hands. Michael jerked forward, reaching out slightly. "It's taking over my body. You gotta help me!" Jeremy begged, tear-filled eyes finally reaching Michael's.

And Michael broke at his next words. "I'm _sorry_!"

And that was the moment he decided to stop waiting. He rushed forward, setting the Mountain Dew Red down beside him as Jeremy finally fell to his knees, still holding his head, and he crouched down beside his best friend, resisting the urge to pull him into his arms. "Hang on, hang on…" He mumbled, reaching back for the Mountain Dew Red.

Then Jeremy's eyes snapped open, that electrifying blue, and Michael's blood ran cold when he started seizing.

_Dammit. Dammit. Okay. Can't do this on my own. Can't… _Michael's gaze trailed around desperately, his eyes widening as his gaze caught onto someone in particular. "Jake!"

Jake turned immediately on his crutches, eyebrows raising. "This is gonna sound weird-" Michael started anxiously, "but if I hold down Jeremy, will you make him drink this Mountain Dew Red?"

Jake blinked once, then twice, eyebrows furrowing. "Actually… That doesn't sound weird at all." He started forward, leaning on his crutches and extending one hand for the drink. Michael tossed it to him without hesitation, just desperate to help his friend.

The moment he did, Jeremy stopped seizing and fell completely limp in his arms, which was even more concerning. Michael looked down, eyes wide. "Jeremy?"

**Michael? The connection is alm- almos- almost… M- Michael, what d- did you…**

"_**UP UP DOWN DOWN LEFT RIGHT A!"**_

The moment Jeremy's Squip said the words, Jake's expression seemed to freeze over. Michael stared, wide-eyed with horror, as a large, shadowy figure rose up behind him. And then Jake's eyes turned a terrifying shade of electric green, a large grin appearing on his face as his head lifted.

Red glitched into sight beside Michael, looking horrified. **Michael…**

"Oh, god…" Michael whispered, then let out a sharp, horrified, "NO!" When Jake suddenly twisted the cap off of the Mountain Dew Red and proceeded to turn the bottle over, the red liquid spilling onto the floor mercilessly.

"No…" Jeremy groaned beside him, seeming too exhausted to put much force behind the word now. Michael's grip on his friend tightened, tears flooding his eyes.

"I was already pretty boss before," Jake hummed, tossing the now almost-empty bottle at the floor. "Now I'm totally boss, and then some more~ I'm living the upgraaaaaa_aaaaaaaaa_de~"

Michael turned his head, staring after the bottle, then looked back up as Jake dropped the crutches and shook his leg a little bit before stepping forward. Jeremy lifted his head, exhaustion somewhat forgotten. "... It healed your legs?"

"No." Jake's eyes narrowed, then he grinned. "But I can't feel pain. It's awesome!"

**Get Jeremy out of here. Now!**

Michael didn't need to be told twice. He pushed himself up, pulling Jeremy up with him, and Jeremy didn't hesitate to follow him as he led him behind the curtain to go backstage. He pulled it shut behind them, honestly very shaken up from that. Shit, their one chance at saving the school, and Michael blew it.

**Not necessarily.**

_What do you mean by that?_

He didn't get a response.

"_There you are, Jeremy~"_

Oh, great, crazy creepy Squipped girls. Michael was shoved aside by both Brooke and Chloe as they approached Jeremy, who looked… very, very uncomfortable as they crowded around them. Michael stepped back, but he didn't pay much attention to them, turning to look around for Red. He was gone again.

He screamed when a hand grabbed his arm, practically jerking away and stumbling a bit before he realized it was just Jeremy. His former friend shot him a concerned look, then pulled him forward, pulling the curtains open again and pointing back toward the stage. "Michael, the bottle," he hissed. "There's still a few drops left."

Michael stared for a moment, eyes widening, then let his gaze flicker up toward the other kids. Brooke and Chloe were now center stage, hugging it out, and Jake was showing off the newfound use of his legs to Jenna. The other students were just standing by, lined up shoulder to shoulder, eyes wide and unfocused. Michael suppressed a shudder. "How am I supposed to get past them?"

"Apocalypse of the Damned!" Jeremy explained excitedly, turning to look back up at him. "Level nine!"

"The Cafetorium…" Michael managed a faint smile despite himself, then his eyes hardened, quickly snapping back into focus. "Got it." He spun around without another word, letting his gaze trail over the other students, mapping a route in his head. Finally, he pulled away from Jeremy, took a deep breath, and went for it.

He fought his way past without much trouble, with Jeremy distracting most of the Squipped students, but when he reached the bottle and knelt to grab it, a hand clasped around his wrist firmly. "I know what you're doing, Michael," Jenna seethed. "I know what everyone's doing. All the time!"

Michael scrambled back, falling back with a soft _oof _and pushing himself back with wide eyes, looking around. The other Squipped students had gathered, trapping him in. And as he stumbled back, his back hitting Jeremy's, he began to realize he wasn't the only one trapped, either.

"_I just feel so connected to you guys right now!"_

"Red," Michael whispered shakily. "Red, what do I do?"

Jeremy turned his head, shooting him a confused look. Michael stayed silent, relieved as Red finally spoke up. **Wait. Wait. Of course… Michael! Don't do anything.**

_There's not much I CAN- _Michael's thoughts cut off, terrified when a hand suddenly grabbed his arm. He whirled his head around, eyes widening in horror as he was yanked forward into the crowd, away from Jeremy. He heard his best friend yell his name, but he didn't get the chance to respond before he was thrown to the ground, completely thrown off guard.

And right next to the Mountain Dew Red. **Yes!**

"Jeremy!" Michael screamed, grabbing the bottle and managing to jump to his feet as Jeremy whirled around, wide-eyed. "CATCH!" With that, he chucked it over the heads of the other Squipped students. Each one stretched up to grab it, and Michael's heart stopped.

Then it took off again, relieved, when the bottle landed in Jeremy's arms. He slumped back, then gasped as he was grabbed from behind, arms forced behind his back. He tried to jerk forward, tried to struggle away, but there was nothing much he could do now. He was stuck. But Jeremy had the Mountain Dew Red, and Michael watched, eyes wide as he brought the bottle to his lips and…

"_**You don't want to do that, Jeremy!"**_ Jeremy's Squip was warning, glitching into view beside Jeremy with a furious look.

"Why not?!" Jeremy snarled, turning to face it. Michael watched desperately, visibly flinching as Red appeared beside him.

**Are you okay?**

"Seriously depends on your definition of okay," Michael whispered, watching Jeremy and the Squip.

"_**Because then you'll never be with her."**_

Just like that, Michael felt his heart completely stop, dropping so low he wasn't even entirely sure it was in his chest anymore. He stopped struggling as Jeremy turned to face Christine. Christine, who was looking at him with those bright, electric, possessed eyes and a creepy smile on her face. As Jeremy lowered the bottle to talk to her, looking torn.

"_You are the person I want to be with every day…"_

Michael felt the tears rush to his eyes as Christine stepped toward Jeremy, who had gone completely still, Mountain Dew Red seemingly forgotten.

"_And this is something that I've been afraid to say…"_

Red looked equally stunned, equally disappointed, blue eyes consumed in glitches as he stared. Michael felt everything around him shatter at that moment. It was Christine. Jeremy would never be able to resist Christine. He never had.

**Michael, **Red whispered painfully. **I'm so sorry.**

"_You're the guy that I'm so kinda into…"_

Michael swallowed, his gaze only fixed on Jeremy. _It's not too late, is it? Not yet. Not until he puts down the bottle. _

**Micha…**

_Don't._

"_The guy I am __**totally **__into…"_

Jeremy's Squip was watching, a grin on its face. Michael turned his attention from Jeremy to the Squip after a moment, his teeth clenching together tightly for a moment. That thing. It had ruined everything. Almost all of the school had been Squipped, turned into mindless human slaves. Michael felt sick. How could anyone do this?

"_This feeling is new…"_

The more he stared, the angrier he got.

"_Jeremy… I…"_

He'd never felt anger like this. Unmasked, unhidden. Just pure rage, simmering deep inside of him, just pushed so deep down at first. Then slowly rising up. It burned through his gut, his stomach, his chest.

"_Love…"_

Every part of him was lit purely aflame. His eyes stung, hot with tears, but this time it wasn't because it hurt.

"_You…"_

Red stiffened beside him for a second, his gaze turning to Michael, but the boy couldn't take his gaze off of Jeremy's Squip. He watched Jeremy exchange a few words, almost silent, before stepping toward Christine.

"She'll do whatever I want…"

"_**That's what I promised."**_

And then the anger boiled over.

"You…" He hissed, just barely loud enough to be heard, but Jeremy's Squip turned in his direction almost immediately. It looked startled to see Michael's glare fixed on it so intently, startled to be seen by anyone but Jeremy. "You son of a bitch."

**Michael, **Red breathed.

"No." Michael's teeth clenched together. "No. After all of this-"

**Michael, look.**

Michael turned to him, just briefly, then back to Jeremy's Squip. And then his gaze turned back to Jeremy, watching him take another step forward.

Watching Jeremy lift the bottle and hand it to Christine. "Drink this."

Jeremy's Squip whipped around instantly, no longer distracted, looking horrified and scared and pissed all at once. "_**Wait! Think about what you're saying, Jeremy, i- if- if she-"**_

Too late.

Christine had the bottle to her lips, and Michael watched, wide-eyed, as the last few drops disappeared and Christine swallowed them down without hesitation.

Everything got very quiet then.

Jeremy's Squip staggered back, shocked. Red was tense, but the look of relief on his face was unmistakable. And Michael felt about ready to cry again for a completely different reason. He managed to jerk out of the hold he was in, stumbling forward, and looked over when Red put a hand on his shoulder. _Did we do it?_

Red just smiled at him, looking more weary than a supercomputer should be. **We did.**

Michael exhaled slowly in relief and opened his mouth to speak. Then he stopped.

He stopped because Christine started screaming. Stopped because Jeremy started screaming. One by one, every student in the room had fallen, holding their heads and screaming out in pain as they doubled over, curled up on the floor. And Michael was completely frozen, at least until the pain hit him at last, too.

… **I'm so sorry, Michael.**


	7. Chapter 7

Michael felt like he was being ripped apart slowly from the inside out. Starting with his head. It was unbearable, and yet somehow after the first few screams, he was silent. His mind was consumed in visions. Him and Jeremy before the Squipcident. Every moment between the two of them leading up to this one. Kindergarten spent sharing juice boxes and cookies. Elementary school spent taking turns having sleepovers at each other's houses. Middle school spent sneaking out in the middle of the night to go downtown and get a Pac-Man tattoo. Most of highschool spent getting high playing video games and watching practically every movie known to man.

Every moment between them had led up to this. Every second. Every breath. Every word. Every hour. Every minute. All of it spent together. Michael, looking back on it all, he didn't regret a moment. Not a single one. Not even the fights. Not even Halloween, the bathroom. He didn't regret a thing.

Through blurry eyes, he focused on Jeremy, unconscious on the floor just several feet in front of him, past the comatose bodies of the rest of his classmates. So close, and yet so far. Michael didn't even think he'd be able to make it to his side right then. He didn't even know if he could move. He didn't even know how _he _wasn't unconscious, for God's sake. It hurt so bad that he wished he was, but he also wanted to be near Jeremy, make sure he was okay.

**He's okay.**

Red…

Michael's tired eyes flashed up, relief flashing across his face as Red flickered into view in front of him. _We need to call an-_

**Ambulance. I know. I've taken care of it, **Red told him quietly. **They're on the way. **Michael visibly relaxed and ducked his head for a moment, sucking in a sharp breath through clenched teeth before looking around, then up at Red again. The only Squip in the room. He looked somewhat wistful, staring down at Michael with heavy eyes, as if it would be the last time…

… It was the last time. The realization dawned, memories resurfacing, and tears sprang to his eyes again for an entirely different reason. He took in a shaky breath, trying to force himself to speak through the pain, but when he opened his mouth the only sound that came out was a quiet, muffled sob. Red flinched, silently crouching down in front of him.

**I'm sorry. I know it hurts. **Red stared at him. Those familiar blue eyes that Michael had gotten used to, buzzing with electricity, were gone. Instead, they were a bright red, flickering softly in the dim light. It would have terrified him in any other situation. But this was Red. Maybe he'd been scared of him before, but nothing about the supercomputer scared him now. **I… **Red swallowed. **I'm trying to hold most of it off as much as I can.**

That actually drew a laugh from his lips. If Red was holding off most of the pain and it still hurt like this, he couldn't imagine what it felt like full-force. Red managed a tiny smile at the thoughts, but it seemed more forced than anything.

"Hey, sad Squip," Michael managed to whisper breathlessly, lifting a shaking hand to push his glasses up and rub the tears from his eyes. "Why the face? We won." The tears kept coming back, and Michael didn't even know why. He settled his glasses back on his face and looked up again to meet Red's gaze.

**Yeah. We did. I told you, I told you we would.**

Michael managed a faint smile.

Red exhaled slowly and smiled again, this time a little more genuinely than before as he nodded. **The school is safe. Jeremy is safe. **Red paused and turned his head to focus on Jeremy for a moment, then looked back at Michael. **All of the Squips have been permanently deactivated.**

"S'good," Michael murmured, a half-slurred response drawn purely from exhaustion as he closed his eyes. The pain had numbed a little; he assumed Red had gained more control over that, thankfully enough. "So can I ask you a question, then?"

**Of course.**

"How are _you _still here?"

The silence after that just confirmed what Michael already knew. He nodded slowly, blinking his eyes open and ignoring the tears that built up again, always ready and willing to spring into action. Red was just staring at him tiredly, a knowing look on his face. "So this is it?" Michael murmured, his voice a little shakier than he would have liked.

**I'm sorry. **Red stayed silent for a moment. **I did what I had to do. **

"I know you did," Michael whispered. "I couldn't have done this - any of this - without you. Not at all." He let out a soft, tearful laugh, passing his hand through his hair as he leaned back, settling into a more comfortable position on his knees and gazing at Red. "I just… I'm surprised."

Red blinked. **Surprised we pulled it off or surprised I didn't turn against you at the last minute?**

"No." Michael leaned forward and reached out for his shoulder, a little hesitant at first, not knowing if his fingers would go right through. He smiled slightly when they didn't though, and gave him a soft nudge. "Surprised that I'm actually gonna miss you a hell of a lot when you're gone, man."

Red smiled slightly despite himself, raising one hand to grab Michael's wrist and giving a soft squeeze. **Ditto, Mell. **They both paused and looked down when Red's hand glitched, and he seemed to fade slightly for a second before reappearing again. The Squip closed his eyes, swallowing, and Michael pulled back, watching carefully.

"What am I gonna do without you?"

**You'll be alright, **Red told him, eyebrows knitting together. **You'll have Jeremy by your side.**

Michael went silent, glancing past him toward Jeremy. He didn't say it aloud, but they obviously both knew what he was thinking: _How do you know that, huh?_

**My quantum processor allows me to envision probable futures.**

Michael cracked a smile and started laughing a little at that, just a few quiet giggles despite himself as he sat back and ran his fingers through his hair. Red smiled at him, wistful and longing, and then they were both quiet again as they considered what this would mean, for the both of them. Red would be deactivated. Permanently. Just erased from existence. The thought made Michael's heart ache, twisting in his chest painfully as he stared down.

He hadn't expected to get attached, really, but now that he was, he just didn't want the thing to go so soon.

**Michael. **Red sounded kind of hesitant now. **There's something I need to tell you. Something I need you to know before I'm gone.**

Michael blinked, pulling himself back to reality as he nodded, looking up and gazing at the Squip. "Lay it on me, pal."

**You're one of the kindest human beings in existence, Michael Mell. Even to those who have wronged you, you've shown the greatest compassion and forgiveness. Your loyalty to your friend is unshakeable. The love you feel for him is greater than I ever could have even imagined. **Red exhaled slowly, going silent for a moment. Michael was honestly speechless by then, the tears in his eyes threatening to spill over. **I'm honored to have been able to know you. To work alongside you. To have assisted you. You are one of the best users a Squip could have gotten, and you've shown me so much. **

Michael's eyebrows knitted together silently, blinking the tears back. "Have I now?"

Red nodded, giving him a soft smile. **You… You've shown me what it's like to care for someone… unconditionally. Uncontrollably. Undeniably. Irrevocably. You've shown me what it's like to feel for someone, the need to protect them at any cost. You've shown me so much more than what I was programmed to experience, and for that, Michael Mell… I will always be grateful.**

Michael swallowed hard, trying to push down the lump in his throat. He was surprised, though, to see the Squip's red eyes were gleaming now, too, as if fresh with tears. "Can supercomputers cry?" He wondered aloud, his voice choked.

**I'm not supposed to be able to feel, either, **Red commented with a soft smile. **I wouldn't be surprised if I was.**

Michael laughed a bit despite himself, taking a deep breath. "Thank you," he finally whispered. "Thank you, for everything. You're so much better than I thought you would be." He exhaled, closing his eyes.

**It's been my pleasure to show you how to trust again.**

"It's so much more than that," Michael murmured. "You… I was at fucking rock bottom, man. I would have given up so much sooner if it weren't for you."

**Then I'm glad you didn't. **Red furrowed his eyebrows. **The world would never be the same, not without Michael Mell.**

"I'll never be the same without you," Michael muttered, then actually started giggling at that, running his fingers through his hair with a roll of his eyes. "Oh my god, that sounded so sappy. Like something out of a chick-flick."

**Yeah, it did, **Red laughed a little. **For the record, though… I wouldn't be the same without you, either. **His smile faded briefly, then returned, a little softer, a little sweeter. **In many ways, Michael… You've shown me what it's like to have a son.**

Michael felt the tears hit him full force at that. He couldn't stop them this time, feeling them brew up and spill silently, and he internally cursed the damn thing for making him cry as he choked out a response. "And you've shown me what it's like to have a dad."

Red leaned forward, his hands coming up wordlessly, brushing against Michael's cheek as if he could wipe the tears away, and he looked a little pained when he realized he couldn't. **You'll be okay without me, won't you? **

He looked so scared, so uncertain, so desperate now. Michael marveled silently as he reached up, clasping his hand over the Squip's and giving a simple, soft squeeze.

"I'll be just fine," he whispered.

**You'll take care of yourself, then? **Red's gaze bore into his, intense.

Michael rolled his eyes, but his smile never faltered as he met the stare easily, eyebrows furrowing. "I will. I promise."

Red studied him silently for a few moments before beginning to relax, looking down. He glitched, faded again, and took a deep, slightly shaky breath. **Thank you for showing me how to feel, Michael. **

Michael just nodded, still trying not to completely break down right then and there. The Squip had been strong for him all this time - it was his turn to be the strong one. Red managed a weary smile at the thoughts, but he didn't comment. Instead, he gestured for Michael to stand up, and after a moment of brief hesitation, he did, realizing the pain was gone.

**It will return when I'm gone, **Red warned, then stepped aside and gestured toward Jeremy. **But I'll hold it off as long as I am physically able to.**

Michael nodded and walked forward, but before he went toward Jeremy, he pulled Red in for one last, simple hug. He would have done it even if the other students weren't currently unconscious on the floor, too. They both needed it right then, and Michael was more than willing to give it to them both. Red held on tighter than Michael had expected, but he most certainly didn't mind. And when he pulled back, he was unsurprised this time to see the tears in the Squip's eyes, again.

Neither of them spoke again, there was nothing to say. Michael simply turned and walked over to Jeremy, silently kneeling beside his unconscious best friend and checking his pulse, relieved to feel his heart still beating, strong and steady. Without a word, he curled up beside him and closed his eyes against the tears as the sound of sirens drew closer.

"**Michael?"**

"Yeah?"

"**Promise me something."**

Michael didn't hesitate. "Anything."

"**Don't… don't ever change." **The Squip's voice glitched a little, fading slightly. "**Okay? Don't ever change."**

Michael stayed silent for a few moments, trying to control himself enough to respond through the tears. Finally, he just nodded and let out a slow, shaky sigh. "... I promise."

A minute later, the pain came back. It hit him full force, worse than anything he'd ever felt in his life. But when he started crying then, it wasn't because of the pain at all.

* * *

He woke up in the hospital, stretched out on his back on one of the beds. His mothers were in the chairs beside him, both of them fast asleep, and Michael turned his head to gaze at them silently, his expression softening. Now that everything was over, he'd need to apologize, explain to them that he was okay now. He sighed and started to sit up, but the sudden, numbing pain in his arm immediately stopped him, and he let out a low hiss of pain as he collapsed back into the bed, gritting his teeth and looking down. There was a large white cast wrapped around his right arm, and for a moment, all he could do was stare, wondering when that had even happened. He'd been so caught up in everything that he hadn't even noticed.

Great… A broken arm. Michael bit back a sigh and turned his head, then did a double take. In the bed beside him, Jeremy was laying as still as ever, looking kind of peaceful as he slept. And beside Jeremy's bed was Rich - in a full body cast, Michael noted sympathetically - just as peaceful as Jeremy, somehow.

Michael lifted his good hand and ran his fingers through his hair, looking up. He felt okay, physically, at least. But he also felt like something was missing. And, of course, something _was _missing. Some_one_, actually. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting out a slow, painful sigh and shaking his head. Red had sacrificed himself for the school. He was a hero.

He was gonna miss him. He was gonna miss the "Told you so"'s, the smug looks and smiles and the "Today's gonna be a big day"'s and pestering him to eat, to take care of himself. He was gonna miss having him there, every day, without fail.

But Red wouldn't have wanted him to be sad about it, would he? No. Red would want him to keep pushing through, to keep fighting, be strong and take care of himself as he'd promised. And, as he stared up at the ceiling, Michael knew that was exactly what he was going to do. He owed it to Red, and that was what he had wanted.

He closed his eyes again, letting himself drift off without really realizing it.

* * *

He was released from the hospital before Jeremy woke up. The doctors said he wasn't in a coma - though Michael was a little skeptical on that - but that he _was _exhausted from all the trauma he'd been put through and was drifting in and out of consciousness. Michael stopped by to visit occasionally, to see if he'd woken up and even coming by to see some of the other kids, including Rich and Jake. But most of his time was spent beside Jeremy's bed, lingering, praying for him to wake up.

He stopped by after school to bring Jake his school stuff. He'd been doing that for all of the kids (except Rich, he couldn't do much work in a full body cast), at least until most of them were released from the hospital and able to go back to school themselves. Jake was still holed up with two broken legs, and Rich was still pretty much unable to do much of anything but talk, so Michael took it upon himself to start caring for them, too. He wasn't really sure why. They just needed it.

He stopped in the doorway, stunned, however, when he saw Jeremy was sitting up in bed, looking exhausted as ever. Michael's heart skipped a beat, doing a weird fluttering feeling in his chest, and he found himself completely unable to move. Jeremy didn't seem to notice him yet - Michael was actually used to that, so it didn't particularly sting - and Rich had his eyes on the ceiling.

Jeremy was talking, "so, all the Squips are gone?" Rich nodded, and Jeremy exhaled. "... How?"

"Uh, ask your buddy." Rich stuck his tongue out slightly, blinking. "Antisocial headphones kid? He's been by, like, a ton, by the way…" There was a short pause, a moment of silence, and then Rich's eyes widened. "Is he your boyfriend?"

It took everything Michael had not to just curl up on the floor right then and there. Jeremy looked like he wanted to do the exact same thing, though Michael was… surprised and a little concerned to see a faint smile appearing on his face.

"No judgement," Rich added, not giving Jeremy time to respond. "Totally bi now-" He finally turned to look, and paused when his gaze rested on Michael.

Michael rolled his eyes a little despite himself, walking forward. "I'm sure some special someone will be lucky to have you, Rich," he said softly.

"You think?" Rich beamed at him, eyes brightening. Michael nodded, even offering a playful wink before he turned back to Jeremy, rubbing his cast and giving his former friend a small smile.

Jeremy was just staring at him, blue eyes wide and brighter than ever. "Michael, what happened?" He asked after a moment, shaking his head. "All I remember is that noise, and…" He made a face.

"Oh, man, it was genius," Michael told him, eyebrows raising slightly as his smile turned into a slight grin. "They were communicating with each other - They were _linked_. Which means, when you consider the kind of high-frequency sonic disturbance needed to wipe out a system that powerful-"

"Michael, Michael-" Jeremy interrupted, and Michael paused, mouth half-open, and snapped it shut. Jeremy gave a small smile, though, looking weary but amused. "My head still hurts."

"Right, ah…" Michael chuckled sheepishly and glanced away, rubbing the back of his neck before clearing his throat. "Anyway, turns out you didn't have to destroy every Squip. Just one." He flinched slightly, swallowing down the sudden lump rising to his throat. "And the rest…" He trailed off. "Boom."

There was a moment of silence as Jeremy stared at him, glancing him over wordlessly with a faint frown. Michael shoved his good hand into his pocket, the other limp at his side. "I don't get it," Jeremy finally spoke, his voice quieter. "After everything I did… you were still there for me. Why?"

_Because I love you, you idiot. _Michael just smiled slightly. "Well, I can't take all the credit. Your dad can be pretty persuasive."

"My dad?" Jeremy raised his eyebrows, and Michael nodded, opening his mouth to respond. Only to pause when, conveniently enough and right on cue, Mr. Heere walked in, a doctor following suit to check up on the boys.

"Jeremy, are you okay?"

Michael grinned and stepped back to let them talk, turning back to Rich, who was kind of just staring at him now, looking lost in thought. Michael tilted his head, walking over to him. "You okay, man?"

"You had one, didn't you?" Rich asked simply, quiet enough so that only Michael could hear. The boy paused for a second, and Rich furrowed his eyebrows. "Michael… why?"

"It wasn't…" Michael sighed, shaking his head. "I'll… explain. Later," he finally said, turning back to watch Jeremy. Rich didn't look very convinced, but he didn't push the subject, relaxing in the bed with a sigh. Michael kept his gaze on Jeremy until Mr. Heere suddenly pointed at him, saying something about Christine and asking why he'd had to hear about her from Michael.

Jeremy looked over at Michael, pausing, and the boy raised his good hand defensively with a shrug. His former friend sighed, looking down. "It doesn't matter. After what I did, I'm lucky if she wants to go to the same school as me."

Michael rolled his eyes and looked toward Jeremy's father, who gave him the same look, seeming faintly amused.

Jeremy blinked. "What?"

"It's reassuring," Michael admitted after a moment, flashing Jeremy a grin. "He still doesn't know anything about girls."

That earned him a pillow to the face, but it was so totally worth it.

* * *

Things were starting to look up.

It had been several weeks since the events of the Play. Michael had kept his promise to Red. He was taking care of himself. He wasn't changing. He kept a smile on his face every day, even when it felt hard to. He continued visiting the hospital for a while, too, mostly going to see Jake and Rich but stopping by on occasion to visit Jeremy, as well. Truth be told, he was keeping his distance mostly because he was still uncertain as to whether or not Jeremy wanted him around. They hadn't spoken about any of it, and Michael couldn't help but feel doubtful that they would. Maybe Jeremy just wanted to let go of that part of his past now. Michael wouldn't blame him. He'd be fine. Even if it hurt, he'd be fine.

He was stretched out on his bed, homework open in front of him. He half expected to hear Red's voice speaking up, still, asking if he needed help. What had started off as annoying, had turned amusing. And now he just missed it. That wasn't something that was going to change. It wasn't something that he wanted to change. Even if it hurt, he didn't regret a single moment with the Squip. Just like he didn't regret a single moment with Jeremy.

He smiled, somewhat bitterly, at the realization that he'd lost the two best friends he'd ever had, both of which to the exact same thing. But, then, as Red would tell him now, he hadn't lost Jeremy. Not just yet. Not completely.

Michael sighed, checking the clock and shaking his head, closing his books and pushing himself to sit up. The schedule Red had put him on was hard to shake - not that he was trying to. But it was time for dinner, and he could smell the pot roast cooking upstairs. Red would have him do half of his work and then stop to eat before finishing, which is exactly what Michael planned to do now. He stood up and brushed himself off, taking a look around the basement before heading upstairs.

It was still hard to process that he was alone down there. He was used to having Red everywhere he went. It had literally been stuck in his head. Michael almost laughed at the thought, combing his fingers through his hair as he reached the kitchen. "Something smells good."

"Pot roast!" His mother sang, turning to face him with a soft smile. "Hey, baby. How are you feeling?"

"I'm good, Ma," Michael assured her warmly, stuffing his good hand into his pocket before waving the cast back and forth with a playful little roll of his eyes. "My arm itches, but I'm good," he added jokingly.

"If it itches, it's healing," his mother chided, turning back to the stove. "Mr. Heere called. Did you know Jeremy just got discharged from the hospital?" She questioned curiously. "He just got home an hour ago."

Michael did know that, actually. Just because he didn't see Jeremy _much _anymore didn't mean he didn't keep up with what was happening with him. "I know, Ma."

"Are you gonna go visit him?"

Michael went silent to debate that. He did plan on going to see Jeremy once he was discharged, but, again, the doubt held him back. He was still uncertain. If his former friend wanted his space, Michael would give him that - but Jeremy hadn't told him what he wanted, which made it all the more difficult for Michael to decide what he needed to do. Did he pull away or try to reconcile? Did Jeremy want to reconcile? He was honestly driving himself crazy with all the questions.

"I-" He started, only to be cut off by knocking at the door. His head turned faintly to the side, eyebrows pinching together. The sound of knocking still took him right back to the Halloween party, the pounding on the door. He shook it off. "I got it," he told his mother, turning and heading to answer the door.

The second, and I mean the _second _he opened it, he was… Well, it felt like it was supposed to be a tackle or something, but Michael barely staggered at the impact, letting out an _oof_ and kind of just going completely still in shock.

It took him a moment to actually realize who it was, but when he did, his heart skipped a beat. "... Jeremy?"

"Micha," Jeremy exhaled slowly, pulling back. His hands found their way to Michael's shoulders, gripping tightly as if he was afraid to let go. Michael shook his head a few times, dazed, and stared up at Jeremy in silence, meeting those pale blue eyes of his with a slightly disbelieving gaze. "I'm _so sorry._"

Silence. Michael blinked. Jeremy blinked back, looking anxious. And after a long, several moments of silence in which Michael kind of just stared at him, Jeremy spoke again, hesitant. "... Michael?"

Michael shook his head once and pulled him back into the hug, digging his fingers into Jeremy's shirt and holding on as tight as he possibly could. He heard a sharp sob of relief from his best friend, and buried his face into Jeremy's shoulder, fighting back tears of his own.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he could hear Red's voice, quiet but smug as ever. _I told you so._

* * *

It was about a week later when his life really took a flip.

He and Jeremy were mostly back to normal. They went to play video games at Jeremy's, since, of course, Michael had sold all of his (which he had no regrets about), but they got high at Michael's place. Michael still had yet to tell him about his Squip. He didn't want to bring up anything unnecessarily. He couldn't imagine what it had been like for his friend, and he didn't want to trigger anything accidentally. He did, however, tell Rich about Red - who was still stunned that a Squip could even be remotely good at all - and he was starting to hang out with Jake and the others a little more, too. They were actually pretty nice, for popular kids.

At the moment, Michael was relaxing in his basement, smoking a joint with his phone beside him on speaker, talking to Jeremy. It had been a long time since Michael had gotten high just for the fun of it. And talking to Jeremy while he was high was always fun. Everything he said was always ten times funnier to Michael when he was stoned.

"_You know what?"_

Michael lifted his head, glancing up at the phone curiously. "What?"

"_I'm gonna say it." _As he waited for Jeremy to continue, Michael sat up and grabbed the joint to take another hit, puffing out smoke and watching it rise up into the air, dissipating slowly. It was mesmerizing "_Tom Ellis is hot."_

"Yeah," Michael agreed without missing a beat, still staring at the smoke.

"_Am I bi?"_

"Prolly." Michael narrowed his eyes. "I mean, you just said Tom Ellis is hot. So you've gotta be at least, somewhat attracted to men. Either that or you're stoned. And I'm the one with the weed. Soooo… bi."

Jeremy snorted. "_I mean… Yeah…"_

"It's logi-" Michael cut off, looking up. Someone was knocking on the door. And since his mothers were at work, Michael would have to get his ass up to answer it. It was probably Jake or something, though Michael couldn't remember inviting them over. Not that he'd mind, of course.

"Hey, Jere, I'll call you back," Michael said simply, hanging up the phone and pushing himself to stand up. It took him a moment, putting the joint away and kicking the bean bag to the corner before finally heading upstairs to answer.

When he did finally reached the door, he threw it open, mouth opening to greet whoever it was, and he stopped short in confusion.

He didn't recognize the man standing there. He looked to be about Michael's age - or, actually, maybe a few years older, now that he thought about it. His hair was dark brown, almost red in color, Michael noted. But the most intriguing part about him was his eyes. A bright, electric red that Michael had only seen once in his life and it left him completely speechless.

The man flashed him a grin. A short, cocky, shit-eating grin. It wasn't even the same face, but it was the exact same look, the look that made him want to bash his head into the wall but also made him want to hug the guy at the same time. "Hey, Mell."

Michael opened his mouth, then shut it again, honestly in complete disbelief.

"What?" The man tilted his head, red eyes never moving from Michael's. "_Squip_ got your tongue?" And there was that smile again.

"Red," Michael finally managed to whisper. It wasn't really a question, but he was looking for confirmation, begging for confirmation. When the man just gave a simple, short nod, Michael practically launched himself forward and threw his arms around him as tightly as possible. "Holy shit."

"Indeed," Red snorted, wrapping his arms around Michael and squeezing slightly. Michael was honestly startled by how… _real _it felt, but he didn't want to question it yet. "I'll explain everything." Red sighed, pulling back. "How have you been?"

"Good. I've been good," Michael told him, a smile finally making its way onto his face. Red mirrored it effortlessly, as if he was unable to help himself. "God, I've missed you."

"You have no idea how much I've missed you, slugger," Red told him with a laugh, stepping forward and closing the door behind him.

"You're human."

"Not exactly." Red tilted his head, holding a hand up. "It looks real, and it feels real, but-" He turned it over and shrugged. "It's not human. The Creator doesn't have that type of power. But I'm more than just a hologram now, at least," he added with a slight chuckle.

"I'll take it," Michael snorted, his smile just widening even more somehow. "So how did this happen, huh? Last I saw you…" He trailed off, smile faltering, and fell silent at the memory of the play, shaking his head. Red fell silent for a few moments, as well, his expression changing as the memories came flooding back.

"The Creator stopped my deactivation process before I could be permanently disabled," he finally started to explain, leaning back against the door. "It took me a while to heal from the Mountain Dew Red, but they explained to me that when I did, I would be sent back."

"Why?" Michael asked, puzzled, then held his good hand up. "Not that I'm complaining, like, at all, I'm definitely not. But…"

"I fulfilled my purpose," Red interrupted, nodding. "And in doing so, I was the first Super Quantum Unit Intel Processor to complete the goals my user had set." A strange look crossed his face. "Apparently, the reward for doing so is…" He gestured to himself. "My own… life."

"So…" Michael tilted his head, his smile returning slowly. "You're not _human_, but you're not in my head anymore? So other people can see you?"

Red nodded. "Correct."

Michael thought about that for a moment before a full-force grin finally appeared on his face, his expression brightening considerably. "Red, you gotta meet Jeremy. He'll _love _you."

Red studied him silently for a moment, his red eyes gleaming brightly with a mixture of amusement and affection. Finally, shaking his head, he reached up and tousled Michael's hair, causing the boy to let out an indignant squeak and duck away. "Whatever you want, sport," Red laughed, watching him. "So you and Jeremy made up, then, huh?"

"Hah… Yeah, we did." Michael already knew what was coming.

"Well, I told you so."

Michael couldn't keep the grin off of his face no matter how hard he tried. And he did try. "Shut up."


End file.
